Impedance-tuned terminal contact arrangement and connectors incorporating same

摘要

A terminal contact arrangement for a connector promotes reduction in deviation of the impedance of the connector when mated to an opposing connector and energized. The connector has an insulative housing with a plurality of terminal-receiving passages disposed in it. Conductive terminals are supported in some, but not all of the passages. The terminal contain distinct terminal sets that include a pair of differential signal terminals and at least two associated ground reference terminals. The two associated ground reference terminals are interconnected together so that electrically, they act as a single ground terminal having a width equal to the sum of the widths of the two connected ground reference terminals. The ground reference terminals of the sets are disposed in a single row of terminals, while the differential signal terminals of the same terminal set are disposed in another row of terminals spaced apart from the row of ground reference terminals. The differential signal terminals are separated from each other within their terminal row by an empty passage so that the two differential signal terminals of each terminal set are spaced farther apart from each other than they are spaced apart from their associated ground reference terminals.