Page 19 - 2021 Connectivity Components: Everything but the Connectors eBook

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» Electroplating uses electric currents to help dissolved metal cations (ions with a positive charge) form a thin metal coating on a submerged object in a process called electrodeposition. This process changes the surface properties of an object and can increase corrosion resistance, reduce friction, and improve durability.
Selective Plating
Selective gold plating has become a very cost-effective way to plate electrical contacts because it limits gold use without reducing the functionality or performance of the connector. With selective plating, gold is only applied to the critical areas on the contact that require additional material to meet performance requirements. Selective plating methods vary depending on desired contact characteristics, but primarily employ electroplating processes. Selective plating techniques include spot plating, stripe plating, brush plating, controlled depth plating, and vibratory barrel plating.
Depending on the size of the contact, these selective plating techniques can save up to 50% of gold plating costs.
» SOS Engineering designs and manufactures an extensive array of high-quality pins and sockets using various material combinations and production processes to satisfy even the most stringent application-specific design, cost, and performance requirements.