Technical or MIL-Spec standards are often the minimum criteria for compliance. When the real expectation is performance beyond a standard, innovative, faster, and longer-lasting components are needed. Aerospace, defense, and industrial customers continually raise the bar for their performance requirements for rugged duty and harsh environment connectors. Not only must the current requirements be met,Read More

Connector suppliers shared new high-speed solutions for IoT, signal processing, electric vehicles, energy storage, machine learning and AI, photonics, 5G, and other technologies at DesignCon 2024. Cloudy skies and drenching rain failed to dampen attendance and enthusiasm at this year’s edition of DesignCon, held in Santa Clara, California, January 28 to February 1. Broad topicsRead More

Meet the Connector: Expanded Beam Connectors Datacom and telecom systems originally relied on physical contact fiber optic connectors, which worked well in data centers and other controlled, protected locations. As the need for this type of connection extended to rugged environments, such as civil and military aerospace, military ground applications, naval systems, industrial sites, andRead More

Disposable and limited reuse medical devices pack technology into a cost-effective format that can be a viable alternative to reusable devices, particularly when it comes to preventing contamination. Cost, functionality, and environmental impact factor into the choice of device as well. Patient safety is a top priority for medical device makers and their customers. LimitingRead More

Common connector types used in medical technologies are also specified for data centers, communications equipment, industrial systems, MIL-aero designs, and other high-reliability, high-performance markets. Every component choice matters in the high-stakes design of medical devices and equipment. The electronic connectors specified for medical technologies aren’t always specific to this market, however. In fact, as medicineRead More

A surgical device manufacturer needed a connector with a mixed configuration of power and data contacts to pair with a 12-foot silicone overmolded cable assembly, making autoclave sterilization difficult. FMLB connectors met the challenge. To choose the best connector for a medical device, a designer must move through a maze of often conflicting requirements. ARead More

Meet the Connector: Lead Wires Lead wires are two small lengths of wire extending from the pole of an electrical component, such as a resistor, capacitor, or semiconductor device, used to connect the component to a circuit or another component. They may also be called hook-up wires, appliance wires, or simply leads. Lead wires predateRead More

The technical challenges of designing and building devices that pack tremendous computing power into tiny packages are considerable. But new high density semiconductor technologies offer a path to keeping Moore’s Law alive. For nearly 60 years, Moore’s Law has set the pace of advancements in semiconductor chip density, but a combination of physics and economicsRead More

The NBASE-T standard was devised to create lower-cost upgrade paths to boost network performance, achieve multigigabit speeds, while using CAT 5 and CAT 6 cabling already in place. There has always been an imperative to move data more rapidly, to simultaneously reduce the amount of time waiting for data and to handle the increasing amountRead More

Suppliers reached deeper into connected systems and adjacent technologies to expand capabilities with strategic acquisitions in 2023. Our annual acquisitions roundup tracks growth and changes at connector companies. The interconnect industry continues to become more interconnected as suppliers expand services, capabilities, products, and supply chains with strategic acquisitions. Several significant changes occurred in 2023 asRead More

The OPC has grown into a collaborative community in which interconnect suppliers work with technology innovators to drive innovation and efficiency in data center infrastructure through open-source hardware.   The Open Compute Project (OCP) is an initiative that aims to design and share open-source hardware technologies, including interconnects, to help create more efficient data centers.Read More

What are AISG Interconnects? Meet the Connector: AISG Interconnects AISG interconnects are circular connectors and cables used in telecommunications to connect antennas, amplifiers, and sensors to controllers, usually base stations, such as in 5G networks and various cell tower equipment. AISG interconnects are named for the Europe-based Antenna Interface Standard Group, which develops the standardsRead More