Interconnection remains a fast-growing segment across the electronics industry, with product developments addressing applications from datacomms and wireless, to automotive and lighting.

Handheld devices remain a key market served with enhancements from interconnect suppliers. For example, the CCM01-03 series from C&K Components offers a slim-line product designed with a number of added features such as an integrated IP-54 switch and inlaid contact finish to extend card lifetime (page 080626). AVX also offers an excellent SIM connector with push-push locking and a ruggedised design (page 080632).

Demand for greater transmission and storage speeds has seen the development interconnect products supporting increased bandwidth, such as Tyco Electronics’ MultiGig family which supports 10Gbits/s MP fibre-optic transmissions (page 080627).

Perhaps one of the largest and most interesting areas of growth is the lighting market. Many of the interconnect developments for LED lighting are designed to facilitate easy installation. A prime example of this is the Tyco Poke-in connector, a surface-mount device allowing for high-volume automated insertion. Similarly, AVX’s 9175-9177 series offers the same functionality as the Tyco device but in a variety of wire gauges, as well as offering two- and three-way configurations (page 080625). Mill-Max has also developed a pluggable gold standard receptacle providing a reliable electrical connection as well as supporting easy field-based upgrades (page 080629).

The introduction of low-power high-brightness LEDs has provided some of the biggest challenges for effective interconnect design. The following pages highlight components that have been designed to turn these challenges into opportunities.