1307057
White Bronze
High Quality Surface Plating &
Excellent Intermodulation
Performance for RF-Connectors
Introduction
M/A-COM鈥檚 new White Bronze surface finish
represents a dramatic improvement upon the wear
characteristics and life expectancy of silver plating, at the
same time offering a far better electrical performance
than nickel. White Bronze plated connectors exhibit
intermodulation characteristics significantly better than
stainless steel or nickel plated products. Silver has
always been the preferred finish from an electrical
standpoint but its corrosion and wear characteristics
especially in harsh conditions are often unacceptable.
While nickel is an extremely rugged finish it has
properties undesirable in many RF applications;
including, high RF and insertion losses, poor
intermodulation performance, high permeability and
poor screening effectiveness.
M/A-COM鈥檚 White Bronze is composed of copper, tin
and zinc which are applied simultaneously to
produce a finished color similar to stainless steel. With
one of the most advanced industrial electroplating
facilities in the world M/A-COM can achieve the levels
of control over the complex galvanic process necessary in
the application of this alloy.
M/A-COM鈥檚 White Bronze is similar in composition
and performance to other copper/tin/zinc alloys
developed in the industry such as Sucoplate
廬
and BBR.
Comprehensive conditioning tests have been
performed to provide a thorough evaluation of
M/A-COM鈥檚 White Bronze plated connector bodies. The
tests were performed to the specifications of the
European and International RF connector standards 鈥?/div>
CECC 22000/IEC 68-2-14/IEC 169-1. The results are
summarized on page 3.
Deposit Characteristics
Composition: Copper (55-60%), Tin (20-25%),
Zinc (15-20%)
Density:
7.9-8.1 g/cm
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Hardness:
300-380 HV
Passivation: Immersion Chrome
Advantages
The M/A-COM White Bronze finish offers the
following advantages:
鈥?low intermodulation
鈥?high corrosion resistance
鈥?low porosity
鈥?low RF losses
鈥?non magnetic
鈥?wear & scratch resistant
Low Intermodulation Products
Dissimilar metals, finishes and discontinuities within
a coaxial line structure give rise to intermodulation
products (IMP). This is of particular concern in
applications requiring low levels of intermodulation,
such as cellular base stations and antennas. White Bronze
plated connectors offer better IMP performance and
lifetime characteristics than nickel. Due to the similarity
of electrolytic potentials and the non magnetic properties
of the finish, levels of intermodulation are commensurate
with silver and far in excess of stainless steel/nickel
connectors. At the same time the excellent wear
characteristics and durability of the finish ensure that the
intermodulation life of the connector is greater than
V5.00
M/A-COM Division of AMP Incorporated
s
North America: Tel. (800) 366-2266, Fax (800) 618-8883
s
Asia/Pacific: Tel. +85 2 2111 8088, Fax +85 2 2111 8087
s
Europe: Tel. +44 (1344) 869 595, Fax +44 (1344) 300 020
M/A-COM鈥檚 industrial electroplating facilities is one of the most
advanced in the world.
www.macom.com
AMP and Connecting at a Higher Level are trademarks.
Specifications subject to change without notice.
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