Murata Manufacturing has developed the NCU01 series, which it describes as the world’s smallest NTC thermistor at 008004-inch size (0.25mm × 0.125mm). An NTC thermistor is a temperature sensor whose resistance drops as temperature rises. Compared with Murata’s previous smallest product, the 01005-inch size (0.4mm × 0.2mm), the new series cuts mounting area by roughly 60% while keeping the same temperature-sensing accuracy, with resistance tolerance of ±1% and B-constant tolerance (a figure describing how steeply resistance changes with temperature) of ±1%. The tiny size lets designers place temperature sensors in tighter spaces and closer to heat-generating parts, supporting more accurate, faster-responding thermal monitoring in smartphones, wearables, and other densely packed devices.
Murata has begin to plan its sample shipments in October 2026 and mass production during 2027. The lineup will expand gradually, starting with 100kΩ and 10kΩ resistance values.
As electronics shrink and grow more sophisticated, component density on boards and inside modules keeps rising, leaving little room to put thermistors near heat sources. When a sensor has to sit farther away, the temperature it reads can differ from the actual component temperature, and rapid temperature changes may take longer to detect. That drives demand for smaller thermistors that don’t use up valuable board space. However, further miniaturization makes precision manufacturing harder, and consistent sensing characteristics are difficult to maintain. For NTC thermistors, tight resistance and B-constant tolerances are essential for stable temperature sensing.
Murata tackled these challenges using its proprietary ceramic materials technology, high-precision processing, and optimization of both the component structure and the manufacturing process. Despite the much smaller footprint, the NCU01 keeps the ±1% resistance and B-constant tolerances of the earlier 01005-inch product.
With about 60% less mounting area, the NCU01 can go in places larger thermistors can’t fit, including right next to heat-generating components. This helps reduce both the temperature difference and the detection delay that come from measuring at a distance, supporting stable operation in high-density designs.
Primary applications include board-level temperature monitoring in smartphones and wearables, as well as inside integrated circuit (IC) packages and system-in-package (SiP) modules.
Murata says it will keep expanding its NTC thermistor lineup, contributing to further miniaturization and improved reliability of electronic devices.
