Hermetically Sealed The switching elements of the reed switch are hermetically sealed in an inert gas atmosphere, so that they are never exposed to the external environment. The reed switch employs no sliding parts, so there is no fatigue related to degradation in the quality of the materials used, ensuring a virtually unlimited mechanical life.
Every movable element has a very low mass resulting in a high speed of operation.
This enables the reed switch to be used as an interface to a transistor or integrated circuit. The reed switch consists of a pair of flexible reeds made of a magnetic material, and sealed in a glass tube filled with inert gas. The reeds are overlapped but separated by a small gap. The contact area of each reed is plated with a noble metal, such as Rhodium or Ruthenium, to provide the switch with stable characteristics and long life. Application of a magnetic field, generated by a permanent magnet or a coil, to the reed switch causes both reeds to be magnetized.