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www.us-tech.com Product Highlight: INGUN Push-On RF Probes By Matthias Zapatka, CTO, INGUN
more than 100,000 mating cycles. Spring-loaded coaxial probes, used to test SMA and other RF connectors, are not particularly new. These probes were introduced by INGUN several years ago as a test solution that can be used beyond the mating cycles of a regular RF connector, and
I
NGUN has developed a new series of RF probes with a locking mechanism that can withstand
the proper torque, but also limits the lifetime of the test connector. SMA connectors usually have a range of between 500 and 1,000 mating cycles, depending on the base material of the conductors, plating and other factors.
Designed for Durability In designing the new probes,
Spring-loaded probe and SMA connector.
can also be used inside a text fixture for semi- or fully-automated testing. These probes must be used in a
test fixture, because there is no lock- ing feature for hand probing. More companies with RF applications are requiring the manual testing of large RF connector arrays. One solution to test the connectors is to use the mat- ing connector. This usually results in the best RF performance. However, this is not only time-consuming, as each SMA needs to be tightened with
INGUN’s goal was to combine the advantages of a spring-loaded test probe, including versatility, durabili- ty, and a long lifetime, with the excellent return and insertion loss performance of a mating connector. The company added a spring-loaded locking feature, which makes the probe usable by hand, without the need for a test fixture. There are other readily-available solutions on the market, such as push-on SMAs, but those lack the spring-loaded fea- ture, affecting their number of poten- tial mating cycles. Three spring-loaded pins with
serrated heads mate with the outer conductor when the two pieces are compressed. This results in a slight impedance discontinuity, because of the air gap, but the losses are negli- gible up to 12 GHz and the probe has a return loss of –20 dB (VSWR 1.22) for most of that range — up to around 11 GHz. A touchdown on the inner ring of the female SMA would increase the return loss, but would make the pins more difficult to mate. At the center of the conductor is
a cone shape that mates with the slotted center conductor of the SMA connector. The conical shape allows for a firm, concentric contact on all sides, yet is soft enough to withstand a large number of disengagements.
Three small beads are used as a
retention feature and hold the SMA connector in place. On insertion of the SMA, a leaf-spring acts as the counterforce and presses against the beads. The force applied to the beads is only 0.5N each. The low force locks the probe securely with no risk of damaging the outer threads. The probe was developed as a
versatile contacting solution for push-on connection of female SMA connectors. The probe’s design allows operators to quickly attach and test rack systems or individual RF mod- ules. The same concept can be applied in a variety of ways. Similar designs could be used to connect and disconnect from Type N connectors, or even bulkier types, such as 7/16 connectors. The probe should not be used for metrology-grade testing or for applications where phase stabili- ty is very important. These probes are designed mainly for power level and similar test applications for lab- oratories, production line testing or
troubleshooting. Contact: Ingun USA, Inc., 252
Latitude Lane, Suite 105-106, Lake Wylie, SC 29710 % 803-831-1200 fax: 803-656-5080 E-mail:
mailbox@ingun.us Web:
www.ingun.us r
Locking probe mated with SMA connector.
See at SMT Hybrid Packaging, Booth 4A-537
May, 2017
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