Elastomeric Connectors Dethrone Stackers

The Gold STAX elastomeric connectors claim to provide greater reliability, performance, and flexibility than mechanical stacking connectors in board-to-board interconnections with no modification costs. Reportedly, they provide lower contact resistance between irregular surfaces than traditional compression-style connectors or wire-based elastomeric connectors, while extending the working range of deflection to 5% to 65%. Eliminating corrosion concerns, they feature gold-coated particles embedded within a low durometer silicone. Within each conductive layer, the gold-coated particles create multiple contact points to the substrate interface. The pitch of the conductive layers is only 0.127 mm (0.005"), allowing multiple conductive layers for making contact to each substrate—a technique known as redundant redundancy. Candidates for these connectors include next generation color LCDs for cell phones that are moving from chip-on-flex (COF) to chip-on-glass (COG), lead-free manufacturing techniques with 8 to 15 I/O positions on the LCD glass. Pricing starts at $0.01 per contact in 250,000-piece annual volumes. TYCO ELECTRONICS, ELASTOMERIC TECHNOLOGIES, Willow Grove, PA. (800) 989-7829.