• Latest
  • Trending

Electroplating Basics

September 10, 2022

binder Unveils Quick Lock Ruggedized Power Bayonet

October 3, 2023

Connector Temperature Rise and Derating

September 29, 2023

Connector Raw Material Costs Decreased 6.9 Percent in Q2 2023

September 27, 2023

Webinar PCBs: RIGID.flex with Flexible Soldermask or Coverlay?

September 20, 2023

Samtec Expands with a New Cable and RF Connector Manufacturing Facility in Pennsylvania

September 20, 2023

KYOCERA AVX Unveils New Series Poke-Home Single Contacts

September 20, 2023

Murata Announced Completion of New Plating Research Building in Japan

September 19, 2023

RF Compression-Mount Connectors Enhance Millimeter Wave Designs

September 1, 2023

Würth Elektronik Introduces micro SIM Card Interface with Card Detection

August 31, 2023

Yamaichi Extended Board-to-Cable Connectors for Battery Management

August 15, 2023

How the Connector Blade Assignments Impact Power Integrity 

August 15, 2023

How to Maintain 50 Ohms RF Transmission Path

August 15, 2023
  • Privacy Policy
inter-connection blog
  • Home
  • Knowledge base
  • Sister Sites
    • Passive Components Blog
    • PCNS Symposium
    • The Passives Times
    • EPCI Home
  • About
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Knowledge base
  • Sister Sites
    • Passive Components Blog
    • PCNS Symposium
    • The Passives Times
    • EPCI Home
  • About
No Result
View All Result
inter-connection blog
No Result
View All Result

Electroplating Basics

September 10, 2022
A A

Electroplating, or electrodeposition, in connector technology refers to the plating of a material, selected for the properties discussed in Chapter I/1.2.3 Contact Finishes, onto a contact spring material, selected for the mechanical and electrical properties discussed in Chapter I/1.2.2 Contact Springs, to optimize the overall electrical performance of the plated contact system.

Fig. 1.21: Plating principle

Figure 1.21 schematically illustrates a simple electrochemical plating system. The “electro” part of the system includes the voltage/current source and the electrodes, anode and cathode, immersed in the “chemical” part of the system, the electrolyte or plating bath, with the circuit being completed by the flow of ions from the plating bath to the electrodes. The metal to be deposited may be the anode and be ionized and go into solution in the electrolyte, or come from the composition of the plating bath. Copper, tin, silver and nickel metal usually comes from anodes, while gold salts are usually added to the plating bath in a controlled process to maintain the composition of the bath. The plating bath generally contains other ions to facilitate current flow between the electrodes. The deposition of metal takes place at the cathode.

RelatedPosts

Connectors Explained

KYOCERA AVX IDC RF Shark Fin Connectors for Antennas Vehicle Systems

Binder Launches M12 Panel L-coded Mount Connectors


The overall plating process occurs in the following sequence:

  1. Power supply pumps electrons into the cathode.
  2. An electron from the cathode transfers to a positively charged metal ion in the solution and the reduced metal plates onto the cathode.
  3. Ionic conduction through the plating bath completes the circuit to the anode.
  4. At the anode two different processes take place depending on whether the anode material is soluble, the source of the metal to be plated, or insoluble, inert. If the anode material is soluble, a metal atom gives up an electron and goes into the solution as a positively charged metal ion replenishing the metal content of the plating bath. If the anode is inert a negatively charged ion from the plating bath gives up an electron to the anode.
  5. The electron flows from the anode to the power supply completing the circuit.

Note that the deposition of metal at the cathode requires an electron so the rate of deposition depends on the flow of electrons, that is, the current flowing from the rectifier. The thickness of the deposit, therefore, depends on the current and the length of time the current is applied. This relationship is a result of Faraday’s law which relates the weight of a substance produced by an anodic or cathodic electrode reaction during electrolysis as being directly proportional to the quantity of electricity passed through the cell.

While Faraday’s law fixes the amount of metal deposited, the distribution of that metal is dependent on the distribution of the current. This fact allows for selective deposition of the metal, a process commonly used in connector contact electroplating. Figure 1.22 schematically illustrates the relationship between current distribution and deposited metal thickness. The same amount of current flows in the two geometries so the total metal deposited is the same, but the distribution is very different. The anode and cathode geometries and spacings in connector electroplating practice are designed to shape the current flow between the anode and cathode so as to control the deposition of the finish material, both thickness and distribution, onto the contact. This capability is critical to the successful implementation of selective and duplex plating processes. The sizes, shapes and distance between electrodes are among the proprietary processes of connector electroplating. Plating bath compositions and applied current practices may also be proprietary.

Fig. 1.22: Current distribution – metal thickness

Related

Source: Wurth elektronik
Next Post

Reel-to-Reel Strip Plating

Contact Finish Electroplating Miscellaneous

Copper Alloy Metallurgy and Processing

Popular Posts

  • Crimped Connections

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • THR (Through Hole Reflow) Technology: Introduction & History:

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Basic Principles of Connectors

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • The Electrical Interface: Contact Resistance

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Space Saving Molex Connector in AR/VR System designs

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Archive

2023
2022

Newsletter Subscribe

  • About
  • Inter-Connection Blog
  • Inter-Connection News
  • Knowledge base
  • NEWS
  • Privacy Policy
  • Sister Sites
  • Subscribe

© 2023 EPCI - Premium Passive Components & Inter-Connect News

No Result
View All Result
  • About
  • Inter-Connection Blog
  • Inter-Connection News
  • Knowledge base
    • Applications
    • Basic Principles of Connectors
    • Design Selection Assembly
  • NEWS
  • Privacy Policy
  • Sister Sites
  • Subscribe

© 2023 EPCI - Premium Passive Components & Inter-Connect News

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.