Over the last three decades, a myriad of optical connectors have come and gone, but small form factor connectors are making the choice easier these days. Molex offers tips on how to specify small form factor optical connectors.    In a maturing market, there are clear winners that prove superior and push out competing technologies.Read More

The annual Optical Fiber Communications Conference continues to grow, and ProLab’s Giacomo Losio reports on the top five technologies that everyone was talking about.   OFC 2015 was a very busy show. Sometimes you go to a two-day event and think it could have been condensed into one, but in OFC’s case it could have been three andRead More

Pure tin plating has been almost universally adopted, but the looming expiration of a critical exemption is poised to bite manufacturers of screw machined contacts. Bob Hult examines the continuing impact of RoHS. Just when you thought the connector industry had bit the bullet and removed all lead from its products, the looming expiration ofRead More

The material used in a connector design significantly impacts its overall performance. Bob Stanton of Omnetics takes a look at how insulator materials affect connectors at work.   The choice of the material of which a connector is made can greatly affect reliability and performance, and often depends on the environment and application in which the connector isRead More

Everywhere you turn, you can find LEDs in almost any lighting form factor, and connections are more challenging than a screw-in light bulb. Andrew Bogaczyk of Phoenix Contact explains how to connect LEDs and why the connection counts.   LEDs continue to dominate the lighting marketplace; everywhere you turn, you can now find LEDs in almost any formRead More

One solution to the signal integrity and reach issues in copper cabling is the use of active copper cable assemblies. Bob Hult takes a look at today’s technology and where it could lead the industry.   The long predicted demise of high-speed copper cables continues to be delayed/frustrated by continuing improvements in the technology of data transmission.Read More

Commonly overlooked when making a fusion splicer purchase, fiber optic cleavers are crucial tools that ensure perfectly smooth fiber ends. Sumitomo Electric Lightwave offers tips on how to choose fiber optic cleavers.   The fiber cleaver is a tool commonly overlooked when making a fusion splicer purchase. Just ask any technician who has worked the lateRead More

There’s lots of talk about the benefits of the Internet of Things, particularly in the industrial arena, but is there a down side? Arthur Visser asks the question: Are AI and IoT a threat to mankind?   If you have been following the news recently, you probably heard that Professor Stephen Hawking, one of theRead More

The goal of PSMC is to address the technology gaps and challenges that limit the advancement of hardware technology for integrated photonic system manufacturing. Learn more about how to get involved. The Photonic Systems Manufacturing Consortium (PSMC) is a collaborative program organized by the International Electronics Manufacturing Initiative (iNEMI) and the MIT Microphotonics Center (MIT-MphC), and funded by theRead More

New silver alloys address the issues of durability and conductivity through a fundamental difference in crystalline structure. Dr. Bob takes a closer look at nanocrystalline silver contact platings.   Two papers* were published last year that introduced nanocrystalline silver alloy contact platings – one a silver-palladium alloy and the other silver-tungsten. Both papers cite theRead More

Elimination of solder from electronic circuit assembly has been suggested as one way to avoid solder’s many shortcomings. Here, Joe Fjelstad makes the case for solderless assembly.   Soldering is a key step in the manufacturing process of electronic assemblies and has been since the earliest days of the electronics industry. It is also one ofRead More

DesignCon celebrated its 20th anniversary this year, and Bob Hult was there to report on the newest developments in high-speed connector technology.   DesignCon 2015 celebrated its 20th anniversary as the premier showcase for high-speed chip, connector, and PCB board technology. More than 170 technical sessions organized in 14 conference tracks and three keynote addresses provided attendees with the latestRead More