1N4007

The 1N4007 is the 1000 V ceiling of the JEDEC-registered 1N400x rectifier family: a planar, glass-passivated silicon PN junction in the DO-41 (DO-204AL) molded epoxy axial package with matte-tin leads and a cathode band, weighing 0.33 g. Because the 1N4001 through 1N4007 differ only in reverse voltage, most board houses standardize on the 1N4007 and delete the lower-voltage lines from the BOM — one reel covers 12 V adapters, 230 VAC mains bridges, relay clamps and reverse-polarity protection alike.

Vishay specifies 1.0 A average forward current at 0.375 inch (9.5 mm) lead length and TA = 75 °C, not at room temperature, so the derating curve — not the headline number — sets your real design margin. Maximum instantaneous forward voltage is 1.1 V at 1.0 A, reverse leakage is 5.0 µA at 25 °C rising to 50 µA at 125 °C, surge capability is 30 A for an 8.3 ms half sine (45 A for a 1 ms square pulse), the I²t fusing rating is 3.7 A²s, junction capacitance is 15 pF at 4 V and 1 MHz, and thermal resistance is 50 °C/W junction-to-ambient or 25 °C/W junction-to-lead with a 150 °C maximum junction.

Recovery is the parameter people get wrong. Vishay does not publish a trr for this family because it is a standard-recovery rectifier; measured reverse recovery is on the order of tens of microseconds (commonly quoted as roughly 30 µs). That is invisible at 50 Hz or 60 Hz, but in a converter switching above a few kilohertz the stored charge turns into switching loss, reverse-recovery current spikes and radiated EMI. Where the diode commutates at switching frequency, use the FR107 (500 ns), the UF4007 (75 ns) or a Schottky such as the 1N5819 or SS34 instead.

Commercially the 1N4007 is a true commodity: Vishay ships it as 1N4007-E3/54 (5,500 pcs on a 13 inch tape-and-reel) and 1N4007-E3/73 (3,000 pcs ammo pack), and onsemi, Diodes Incorporated, STMicroelectronics, MCC, Rectron and dozens of Asian fabs produce pin-compatible parts at fractions of a cent in volume. Counterfeiting is less lucrative than for ICs but still common in two forms: lower-voltage members relabeled as 1N4007, and small-die clones that pass a DC check and fail on surge. Screen lots by applying 1000 V reverse and measuring leakage, checking body length (5.2 mm max) and weight, and confirming the marking is laser-etched rather than printed ink.