Electrical current carrying capacity is a primary concern of the design of the interconnect medium for any electronic system. This is as true for a power supply as for a radar or battlespace communications system. The performance of the interconnection carrying the required electrical current will be affected by the resistive heating of the components of the connectors and the cables. The generated resistive heating will cause a rise in temperature of the connector and cable which may eventually melt the connector or damage the system components.

Two technologies for limiting the temperatures generated by resistive electrical heating, and therefore maximizing the electrical current handling capability of the interconnect, are currently being explored by the EMPF. These technologies reduce the heat generated in a standard connector by multiplying the number of contact points between each connector pin and its socket.

For example, the standard existing connector socket has two or three leaf spring contacts that touch the connector pin in upon insertion trifurcated contact methods used in the common existing connectors (see Figure 3-1).

In contrast, the new high current pin and socket technologies utilize tens or hundreds of contacts, rather than the standard two or three, to minimize the contact resistance of the pin in the socket and therefore minimize the resistive heating at a given current level. This lower heating rate allows for a larger current carrying capability in a standard pin size.

Figure 3-2 shows both of the two high current interconnect technologies being explored by the EMPF. Results so far are very encouraging. Resistance values using the new interconnect technologies in the sockets with standard interconnect pins show
several times lower electrical resistance values than do the standard pin and socket contacts. When preliminary tests of socket contacts outfitted with the new technologies have been conducted, significant increases in current carrying capacity for a given size standard pin contact have been realized with only the standard temperature rise.

Benefits of the new contact technologies will be that smaller and lighter form factor connectors will be usable for much higher
currents. This allows the power distribution, that is critical for the new Navy ship designs, to be much more compact and lighter than was required using the existing style of bifurcated or trifurcated electrical contacts.

The role of the EMPF in this development is to facilitate the incorporation of this promising, commercially inspired development into critical Navy applications using military grade circular, rectangular, and “z-axis” (busbar to busbar) connectors for aboard-ship electronics. Applications to other services requirements may also be considered as the technology matures.