Advances in non-metallic materials are poised to redefine the construction of electronic interconnects across the military, space and aerospace sectors, with particular emphasis on harsh-environment and ruggedized applications. The current materials landscape for electronic components, especially those specified in interconnect designs, faces new challenges driven by increasingly demanding material requirements. While some interconnects utilize existing nonmetallics (ceramics, glass, silicon, epoxies) enhancing current and developing future designs will require new materials technology, including those aimed at:
• Harsh or extreme environment applications
• Flexible, foldable, and wearable devices
• Enhanced energy efficiency during manufacturing and in end-use products
• Ultra-dense miniaturization for smaller, faster, and more efficient devices
But why are the design. engineering and materials science communities so focused on nonmetallic interconnect components?
Lowering overall weight of a connector or assembly while maintaining structural integrity is the primary driving force, particularly in aerospace and electric or hybrid ground vehicle applications where every ounce counts. Another benefit for some materials is ease of molding shells and interconnect components into complex shapes or ultra-miniature sizes that would be problematic for traditional machining. And some composites and other nonmetallics have alternative electrical properties that can be more desirable in some applications.
So why isn’t there mass utilization of nonmetallics?
Carbon fiber, the current state-of-the-industry structural composite used in many electronic components, costs roughly ten times as much as stainless steel which is the primary shell material for most conventional interconnects. To address this cost differential, a range of alternative strength- and weight-effective materials are under development. Next-generation connector components are expected to incorporate materials such as nanocomposites, advanced thermoplastic composites, and graphene composites:
· Nanocomposites are materials with a resin base reinforced by fibers or particles. This materials group offers enhanced strength, heat resistance, EMI shielding and electrical conductivity, making nanocomposites a high-performance alternative to metallic interconnect components.
· Advanced thermoplastic composites (ATCs) are commonly specified for aerospace, marine, automotive, and energy applications. Relatively short manufacturing cycle times, together with cost-effective processes, make ATCs a practical alternative for interconnect usage.
· Graphene composites are a single-layer matrix and boosts mechanical strength and stiffness, tensile strength and offers electrical and thermal conductivity. While the least utilized of the three composites discussed here, raw materials manufacturers are expected to ramp up production and lower costs that will allow for increased usage.
Despite these advances, the interconnect world will still be utilizing stainless steel and other metals as primary materials of choice for the foreseeable future given availability and military spec requirements. However as costs for state-of-the-art materials and processing methods decline, their adoption is expected to rise. As manufacturers begin developing mass-distribution, next-generation nonmetallic-based interconnects you can depend on CDM Inc to be the first to offer those exciting new lines.