The Plateau HS Dock+ high-speed mating connectors feature an innovative metallized plastic housing for improved signal integrity (IS) and multiple design flexibility options. Molex utilizes its patented Plateau Technology™ (gold-plated housing) to create a high-speed mating connection system for differential and single-termination applications. These well-shielded connectors have a contact design that allows four mating levels (FMLB: First In, Last Out) with a pin compatible with the printed circuit board (PCB) interface. With low mating force, guiding features, multiple offset heights, and the ability to mat in standard or inverted coplanar positions, this high-speed mating connection system is ideal for PCB-blade (card option) to PCB-midplane (host) applications.
The Plateau HS Dock+ connectors have other performance-enhancing features such as a smaller snap-in pin on the PCB terminal and a shorter terminal tip on the mating interface to reduce impedance. Additionally, grooves and ribs added to the connector shield and housing improve insertion and reduce return loss by 50% at 10 GHz, while additional ground pins and gaps on the lower housing reduce interference and return loss by 30% at 10 GHz.
“The new connectors address the need for fast, flexible, and electrically stable connectors in high-performance systems while also providing a backward-compatible solution for legacy connectors,” says John Holba, product manager at Molex.
These connectors, designed for customers in markets such as data, telecommunications, aerospace, defense, and industrial, achieve transmission speeds of up to 25 Gbps. “That represents a 150% improvement in transmission rate over the existing Plateau HS Dock™ connector, which provides transmission rates of 10 Gbps,” says John Holba.
