Abstract: An electrical connector that has a housing, a contact carrier slidably coupled to the housing, at least one spring member received inside of the housing and adjacent the contact carrier for abutment with the contact carrier, and an interposer received in the receiving end of the contact carrier and remote from the spring member. The contact carrier is slidable with respect to the housing along a mating axis between unmated and mated positions.

Abstract: An electrical connector for high speed signals. The connector has multiple conductive elements that may serve as signal or ground conductors. A member formed with lossy material and conductive compliant members may be inserted in the connector. The conductive compliant members may be aligned with conductive elements of the connector configured as ground conductors. For a connector configured to carry differential signals, the ground conductors may separate pairs of signal conductors. The member may further include a conductive web, embedded within the lossy material, that interconnects the conductive compliant members. For a receptacle connector, the conductive elements may have mating contact portions aligned along opposing surfaces of a cavity. The conductive elements may have contact tails for attachment to a printed circuit board and intermediate portions connecting the mating contact portions and the contact tails. The conductive compliant members may press against the intermediate portions.

Abstract: An electrical connector has a first wafer having a first housing with a first plurality of contact beams extending from the first housing in a first plane. A second wafer has a second housing with a second plurality of contact beams extending from said second housing in a second plane substantially parallel to the first plane. A dividing panel member extends from the insulative housing between the first plurality of contact beams and the second plurality of contact beams. Each of the contact beams extending from the wafer pair is configured to mate with a corresponding backplane contact in a backplane connector. The contact beams extending from the wafer pair and the backplane contacts are configured such that each pair of corresponding contacts includes a first contact point and a second contact point. When the wafer pair is fully received by the backplane connector, contact between the contact beam and the backplane contact is maintained at both the first and second contact points.

Abstract: A wafer assembly for an electrical connector, and method for making, that has a first and second wafers configured to interlock with one another. Each of the wafers has at least one contact that has a body portion with a mating end for coupling to a mating contact and a tail end opposite the mating end for engaging a printed circuit board where the mating and tail ends extend from opposite sides of the wafer. A conductive spring member is sandwiched between the first and second wafers. The wafer assembly can include one or more electronic components in electrical contact with the spring member and one of the contacts.

Abstract: A fastener and method for mounting a connector to a panel, the fastener having an outer sleeve housing having a mount bushing portion and a locking portion with a collapsible end, and an inner pin member received in the outer sleeve housing and axially moveable therein between locked and unlocked positions. The inner pin member has a body with a head end that cooperates with the mount bushing portion of the outer sleeve housing and a locking end that cooperates with the locking portion of the outer sleeve portion. When the inner pin member is in the unlocked position, the collapsible end of the locking portion of the outer sleeve housing is allowed to collapse. When the inner pin member is in the locked position, the locking end of the inner pin member prevents collapse of the collapsible end of the locking portion of the outer sleeve housing.

Abstract: A cable connector with improved performance and ease of use. The connector has staggered ports to reduce crosstalk and to prevent incorrect insertion of a plug into a receptacle. The plug may be constructed with subassemblies, each of which has a lossy central portion. Conductive members embedded within an insulative housing of the subassemblies may be used to electrically connect ground conductors within the subassemblies. Further, the connector may have a quick connect locking screw that can be engaged by pressing on the screw, but requires rotation of the screw to remove. Additionally, a ferrule may be used in making a mechanical connection between a cable bundle and a plug and making an electrical connection between a braid of the cable bundle and a conductive shell of the plug. The ferrule may be in multiple pieces for easy attachment while precluding deformation of the cable, which disrupts electrical performance.

Abstract: An interconnection system with a compliant shield between a connector and a substrate such as a PCB. The compliant shield may provide current flow paths between shields internal to the connector and ground structures of the PCB. The connector, compliant shield and PCB may be configured to provide current flow in locations relative to signal conductors that provide desirable signal integrity for signals carried by the signal conductors. In some embodiments, the current flow paths may be adjacent the signal conductors, offset in a transverse direction from an axis of a pair of conductors. Such paths may be created by tabs extending from connector shields. A compliant conductive member of the compliant shield may contact the tabs and a conductive pad on a surface of the PCB. Shadow vias, running from the surface pad to internal ground structures may be positioned adjacent the tip of the tabs.

Abstract: A cable termination that provides low signal distortion even at high frequencies. Conductive elements of the cable are fused to edges of signal conductors in a cable connector or other component terminating the cable. For terminating a differential pair, the conductive elements of the cable may be terminated to opposing edges of a pair of signal conductors in the cable termination. The conductive elements may be shaped such that the spacing between signal paths passing through the conductive elements of the cable and into the signal conductors of the cable termination is uniform.

Abstract: A modular electrical connector facilitates low loss connections to components on a printed circuit board. A portion is of the connector is formed of one or more first type units with conductive elements designed to be attached to a printed circuit board. Signals passing through those units may be routed to components on the printed circuit board through traces in the board. One or more second type units may be integrated with the connector. Those units may be designed for attachment to a cable, which may provide signal paths to a location on the printed circuit board near relatively distant components.

Abstract: A printed circuit board includes a plurality of layers including conductive layers separated by dielectric layers, the conductive layers including a signal layer; and via patterns formed in the plurality of layers, each of the via patterns comprising first and second signal vias extending from a first surface of the printed circuit board to the signal layer, the signal layer including first and second signal traces connected to the first and second signal vias, respectively, the signal layer further including a ground conductor located between the signal traces and adjacent signal-carrying elements.

Abstract: A cable connector that includes a housing that receives a contact member and has opposite first and second ends, an inner sleeve having an insert section extending into the second end of the housing and a cable termination section for receiving a cable and that includes a locking portion, a backshell having a first end that couples to the second end of the housing and an opposite second end that surrounds the sleeve's cable termination section, and a locking member positioned between the sleeve's cable termination section and the second end of the backshell. The locking member has a locking element for cooperating with the sleeve's locking portion. The backshell is rotatable with respect to the housing in a tightening direction, and the locking element engages the locking portion of the inner sleeve such that rotation of the backshell in a loosening direction opposite the tightening direction is prevented.

Abstract: A printed circuit board includes a plurality of layers including attachment layers and routing layers; and columns of via patterns formed in the plurality of layers, wherein via patterns in adjacent columns are offset in a direction of the columns, each of the via patterns comprising: first and second signal vias forming a differential signal pair, the first and second signal vias extending through at least the attachment layers; and at least one conductive shadow via located between the first and second signal vias of the differential pair. In some embodiments, at least one conductive shadow via is electrically connected to a conductive surface film.

Abstract: An electrical connector electrically connects a first printed circuit board and a second printed circuit board, where the electrical connector includes: (a) an insulative housing; (b) a plurality of signal conductors, with at least a portion of each of the plurality of signal conductors disposed within the insulative housing; (c) each of the plurality of signal conductors having a first contact end, a second contact end and an intermediate portion therebetween; and (d) a passive circuit element electrically connected to the intermediate portion of each of the plurality of signal conductors, where the passive circuit element is housed in an insulative package and includes at least a capacitor or an inductor.

Abstract: An interconnection system including a pluggable transceiver and a connector disposed in a cavity of a conductive cage. The pluggable transceiver may include a latching mechanism for locking to the conductive cage. The latching mechanism may include a pair of latches positioned on opposite sides of the pluggable transceiver. The latches may be spatially offset from each other along a longitudinal and/or vertical direction. Corresponding latching tabs in the conductive cage may be disposed in the same relationship, even in a ganged configuration when latching tabs for adjacent cavities are formed in a common wall between cavities. Cammed surfaces of a release mechanism, centered between latching edges of the transceiver latches may impart a latch releasing force at a central portion of the latching tab forcing the lathing tab back into the common wall, reducing rotational moment applied in prior designs, such as QSFP ganged cages.

Abstract: A high speed, high density connector has an organizer between a mounting interface of the connector and a surface of a printed circuit board to which the connector is mounted. Contact tails of the connector may pass through the organizer. The organizer may have an insulative body. Portions of the organizer may be selectively made more conductive by plating on the body. Those plated portions may electrically connect contact tails of ground conductors passing through the organizer. The plated portions may be lossy or conductive.

Abstract: A modular electrical connector with separately shielded signal conductor pairs. In some embodiments, the connector is assembled from modules, each containing a pair of signal conductors with surrounding partially or fully conductive material. In some embodiments, the modules have projecting portions, of conductive and/or dielectric material, that are shaped and positioned to reduce changes in impedance along the signal paths as a function of separation of conductive elements, when the connectors are separated by less than the functional mating range.