50 ns recovery — where it fits in the switching loop
The STTH15AC06CT: Its 50 ns reverse recovery time places it in the class of diodes suited for continuous-conduction-mode PFC boost stages, output rectification in high-frequency SMPS, and freewheeling paths in motor drives where the recovery charge must stay low to keep the MOSFET or IGBT switching clean. The common-cathode configuration in a single TO-220-3 package means two diodes share the cathode tab — the centre pin is the common cathode, the outer pins are the anodes. This maps directly to centre-tapped transformer secondaries or dual-rectifier bridges without splitting the layout across two separate packages.
Conduction and thermal budget per diode
Forward voltage is 1.9 V maximum at 7.5 A — at the rated current each diode dissipates roughly 14 W. The 1 µA leakage at 600 V reverse is low enough that it contributes negligible loss in a PFC stage running at 100 kHz.
Through-hole TO-220-3 — the leads are 0.025-inch thick and 0.055-inch wide, fitting standard 0.100-inch pitch holes on a 1.6 mm board. The package is supplied in tube (50 pieces per tube typical). MSL for this package class is Level 1 — no bake required before reflow or wave solder, which simplifies the assembly line for a contract manufacturer. The cathode tab is electrically live at the DC bus potential — the heatsink interface must be electrically isolated or the heatsink itself must be grounded. A sil-pad or mica washer with thermal grease is the standard approach for TO-220 power diodes.
The base product number is STTH15, which covers the 600 V family in this current class. No official second-source cross-reference is published by ST, but the TO-220-3 footprint is standard across the industry — parametric equivalents from other manufacturers exist but require pinout and thermal verification.