1500W axial TVS for automotive transient protection — now obsolete
The 1.5KE12HE3/73: It comes in the DO-201AA (DO-27) axial-lead package for through-hole mounting. Qualified to AEC-Q101, it was designed for automotive 12V system transient suppression — clamping a 17.3V ceiling keeps the downstream electronics safe from load-dump and inductive spikes on the battery line.
Lifecycle reality — obsolete, no direct successor on record
Vishay has marked the 1.5KE12HE3/73 as obsolete. For a BOM that still calls out this exact part, the procurement path is surplus or broker inventory. A board-level replacement would require a functionally equivalent 1500W TVS in the same DO-201AA footprint with matching breakdown and clamping voltages — a parametric search against the 10.8V min breakdown and 17.3V max clamp is the starting point.
Clamping parameters and pulse capability
No power line protection (bidirectional) — this is a unidirectional device, so it clamps only positive transients relative to ground. For negative-going spikes, the body diode forward-conducts; the circuit must handle that current path.