Connectors have three basic properties: mechanical prop […]
Connectors have three basic properties: mechanical properties, electrical properties, and environmental properties. The arrival of the 5G era also requires connectors to undertake the functions of converting electrical signals, optical signals, and shielding. Connectors are essential electronic components, and the focus on connector performance is different in different fields.
Mechanical performance: refers to the ability of the connector to work normally under the impact of various mechanical external forces. The insertion force and mechanical life are the important mechanical properties of the connector. The insertion force refers to the insertion force and the extraction force, and the mechanical life refers to the mechanical durability index, which is based on whether the connector can be completed normally after the specified insertion cycle. Connection function as a basis.
The plug-in force and mechanical life of the connector are related to the structure of the contact piece, the quality of the coating on the contact part, and the dimensional accuracy of the arrangement of the contact piece.
Electrical performance: refers to the ability of the connector to maintain normal connection function under different current and voltage conditions, mainly including contact resistance, insulation resistance, electric strength and electromagnetic interference shielding effect. Others, such as RF coaxial connectors, also have electrical indicators such as characteristic impedance, insertion loss, reflection coefficient, and voltage standing wave ratio; high-speed signal connectors also have new electrical indicators such as crosstalk, transmission delay, and time delay.
Environmental performance: refers to the ability of the connector to maintain normal operation in various environments. Common environmental performance includes temperature resistance, humidity resistance, salt spray resistance, vibration, shock, etc. Other environmental performance also includes sealing, liquid immersion, low air pressure Wait.
The working temperature of the connector should be equal to the sum of the ambient temperature and the temperature rise of the contact. At present, the high working temperature of the connector is 200℃, and the low temperature is -65℃. Moisture intrusion will corrode the metal parts of the connector and affect the insulation performance of the connector, so the constant humidity and heat conditions for the connector are 90%~95% humidity (according to product specifications, up to 98%), +40±20℃ temperature range, requiring less than 96 hours of experimental time.
When working in an environment containing moisture and salt, the metal structural parts of the connector and the surface treatment layer of the contact parts may cause galvanic corrosion, thereby affecting the physical and electrical properties of the connector. The salt spray test is to verify the ability of electrical connectors to withstand this environment. In a test chamber with a salt spray atmosphere, the exposure time of the connector is specified to be at least 48 hours.
Vibration and shock resistance is an important indicator to verify the robustness of the connector's mechanical structure and electrical contact reliability, and it is also one of the important properties of the connector. The duration, interruption time, peak acceleration, pulse waveform, etc. are clearly specified in the connector impact test.