One-Piece Connector Supports Ultra-High Transmission Rates

Transmission rates of up to 10 Gb/s over copper are claimed for a new one-piece, compression-mount, board-to-board interconnect. Connector-X reportedly can handle 10-Gb/s data rate transmissions with less than 2% crosstalk at 50 ps rise-time. In addition, the connector is said to reduce the cost of existing systems that require high-speed pc board materials to achieve 2.5-Gb/s transmission speeds by allowing them to convert back to the use of standard FR-4 materials.Connector-X is attached to daughtercards using screws and nuts or other standard hardware and is mated to contact pads on motherboards using a lock-and-ejector mechanism. No soldering is required. The compression-mount connectorÕs plated copper contact pads have a 105½ impedance, which the company hopes to lower to 100½. Delivery times for initial evaluation samples are four to six weeks, with production scheduled to begin in early 2002. Pricing for the samples is $250 to $300 each. For more details, call Tim Wrenn at NORTHROP GRUMMAN CORP., Winchester Electronics Div., Watertown, CT. (860) 483-0393.