I've been browsing through some datasheets for power mosfets, and a lot of the high-current ones will have a footnote for the Idmax rating that says "current limited by package." Here's one example:
http://www.vishay.com/docs/71109/71109.pdf
Is it a thermal limit? Would you be able to get the rated current with a proper heatsink? Or is it the current limit of the actual package leads? If it is, would the through-hole packages have a higher limit than the surface mount packages?
And how could you figure out how much the package current limit differs from the published limit?
http://www.vishay.com/docs/71109/71109.pdf
Is it a thermal limit? Would you be able to get the rated current with a proper heatsink? Or is it the current limit of the actual package leads? If it is, would the through-hole packages have a higher limit than the surface mount packages?
And how could you figure out how much the package current limit differs from the published limit?