News

Tribotek Unveils Power Interconnect Contact Technology

March 03, 2005 by Jeff Shepard

Tribotek Inc. (Burlington, MA), an electrical interconnect technology company focused on the design, development and manufacture of high-density power and data connectors, unveiled its power contact technology, which is designed to outperform conventional power interconnect solutions currently available in the marketplace, and will enable design engineers to meet the demands imposed on power distribution systems by the increased currents due to lower operating voltages in modern microprocessors, by using power interconnect solutions with higher performance, in smaller form factors, and at cost levels that are competitive with today's power interconnect solutions.

Tribotek has applied principles of tribology and de-coupled two major design objectives — conducting current and generating normal force — resulting in a contact design with superior electrical performance. This contact system features a woven socket design that uses pure copper conductors with parallel points of contact. The result is low-milliohm contact resistance, and current densities higher than those of current conventional power contact technology. Current ratings depend on contact size, and go all the way up to approximately 700 A for a size #4/0 contact.

Wire conductors in the socket are woven with an engineered fiber to provide the normal force required for a good electrical contact. This design gives the mating interface low insertion forces, and minimal wear without the need for lubricants. Because the Tribotek contact system maintains wipe across the mating surfaces, debris is cleared and oxide layers are broken, making it reliable and tolerant to thermal cycling as well as vibration. A flexible manufacturing process allows Tribotek to produce a wide range of contact sizes, from 0.040" to 0.50", including metric sizes. Various terminations are possible for use with printed circuit boards, cable and busbars.