subject: A Guide To Coax Assemblies [print this page] Coax Assemblies using round, shielded, flat, coax cable, and other derivatives, El-Com can produce cable assemblies for power, control, communication, and data transfer. Cable and wire form integral parts of many different kinds of electrical and communications systems. Cabling and wire components are found in telecommunication lines, computer systems, medical technology, power grids and military usages to name just a few examples.
The standard coaxial cable assembly features "RF" or "F-pin" connectors at either end, which are widely used for home electronic devices. These connectors consist of a copper ring to represent the outer conductor and a metal pin for the inner conductor. They can be plugged directly into most modern electronics, though converters are available for non-standard or foreign devices. Some coaxial cable assemblies feature "pig-tail" connectors at one end, where the two conductors are split to accommodate two separate connections or devices.
A typical coax cable assembly house will have a number of critical component dimensions measured and controlled through their own proprietary statistical process control program. Hipot and continuity testing along with visual inspection and gauge measurements are used to ensure that the process is in control. Typical in-house testing includes parameters such as VSWR, insertion loss, phase and delay measurements, as well as most standard mechanical and environmental tests (temperature range, humidity, vibration, shock and abrasion) as required by the standards called for by the given application.
Cable assemblies can be found in most high-frequency systems, interconnecting modules and components for effective signal flow. They are usually specified in terms of insertion loss and voltage standing wave ratio (VSWR), among other parameters. In some applications, however, passive intermodulation (PIM) performance can be just as critical, especially in communications networks operating with multiple carriers. Fortunately
However there is another effect that can cause loss of detail fast-risetime signals. There is such a thing as frequency-dependent losses in the cable. There is also a property of controlled impedance cables known as dispersion, where different frequencies travel at slightly different velocities and with slightly different loss.
Cable types and connectors have become rather specialized to meet the exact demands of how and where they intend to be used. For instance, test cables are designed for precision, flexibility and reliability over numerous mating/unmating cycles.
