What materials are the made of SMA connectors

SMA connectors are typically made of a combination of different materials, to control the cost of product precisely, we choose the variety materials for SMA parts:

Popular Materials List

Brief of Materials

• Brass

Particularly lead-containing brass, possesses high mechanical strength, corrosion resistance, and cutting performance. C3604 brass is commonly used for RF connectors. C3603 is necessary for low intermodulation application scenarios. This substance has a very low iron content. Brass is utilized for the body and nut of consumer and common SMA connections.

• Stainless steel

Generally, different stainless steel grades, such as 303,304, and 316L, are used depending on the application. It is utilized for the body or nut of high-end and military-grade SMA connectors due to its great corrosion resistance and strength.

• PTFE

Short for Poly tetra fluoroethylene, has the characteristics of high temperature resistance, corrosion resistance, stable dielectric constant, and easy CNC processing. It is generally used as an insulator for SMA connectors.

• PEEK

It is a polymer material with high mechanical strength, high temperature resistance, impact resistance, flame retardancy, acid and alkali resistance, hydrolysis resistance, wear resistance, fatigue resistance, radiation resistance and good electrical properties. It is easy to process, can be injection molded or machined, and has a long-term working temperature of 260 degrees. It is used as an insulator for high-end SMA connectors.

• ULTEM 1000 (PEI)

With high heat resistance, high strength and modulus, and extensive chemical resistance to high temperature, and long-term heat resistance (RTI ＞ 170 ° C), is generally used for high-end military and aerospace grade SMA connectors.

• Phosphor Bronze

Phosphor bronze is a copper, tin, and phosphorus alloy with a firm texture and increased corrosion resistance. It is mostly utilized for SMA sockets and pins as wear-resistant parts and elastic components. It has lower elasticity than beryllium bronze, higher elasticity than brass, lower elasticity than beryllium bronze, and is easier to cut and process. Beryllium copper can be replaced with phosphor bronze.

• Beryllium Copper

Beryllium bronze is a type of bronze in which beryllium is the primary alloying element. It has 1.725% beryllium and traces of nickel, chromium, titanium, and other elements. After tempering and aging, the strength limit can reach 12501500MPa, which is near to that of medium strength steel. It possesses good plasticity when tempered and can be processed into a variety of semi-finished goods. Beryllium bronze possesses high hardness, elastic limit, fatigue limit, and wear resistance, as well as excellent corrosion resistance, thermal conductivity, and conductivity. When impacted, it does not emit sparks. It is commonly utilized as critical elastic elements, wear-resistant parts, and explosion-proof equipment. It primarily use a SMA connector socket, which can provide more retention force and pin and socket durability.

• Copper

Copper is pure industrial copper. It is commonly known as red copper because of its rose red and purple hue once the oxide coating forms on the surface. It has strong conductivity and thermal conductivity, great plasticity, and is easily processed by hot pressing and cold pressure. It is widely utilized in the production of wires, cables, brushes, electric spark corrosion copper, and other high-conductivity products.

The ferrule of a SMA connector is primarily utilized, but H62 brass can also be used to save money.

Summary:

The materials used are determined by the needs and application scenarios of the clients. Consumer clients, for example, require low-cost solutions. We can use brass solutions for the body, nut, pin, and socket, and PTFE for the insulator. For military and laboratory applications, we can utilize stainless steel body and nut, brass pin, beryllium copper socket, and PEEK insulator.