Connector Plating and Other Metals – Conductivity In Cables

All cables (except fiber optic patch cables) are made of metal. If you look at any cable, you can see metal in the connector at the end. Some connectors are made entirely of metal, while others are mainly made of plastic and contain some small metal pins. No matter how much metal is used in the process of making the cable, and no matter what aims this cable is used for, these materials are used for the same purpose: conducting electricity. People who have used various optical patch cords over the years may have noticed that from one cable to another can use different metals.

Why use some metal in the cable?

So why use different metals? Is there a metal better than other metals? There are many different factors in choosing the metal used in the patch panel patch cord. The first is electrical conductivity. the following list shows the metals commonly used in cable manufacturing, ranging from the highest conductivity to the lowest conductivity (assumed to be pure metal).

1.Silver; 2.Copper; 3.Gold; 4.Aluminum; 5.Zinc; 6.Nickel; 7.Brass; 8.Bronze; 9.Iron; 10.Platinum; 11.Carbonized Steel; 12.Lead; 13.Stainless Steel.

As shown in the list above, soft metals are better in conducting. Many people think gold-plated connectors are the best, but in fact gold ranks third in conductivity. However, conductivity is not the only factor involved in making network patch cables and other similar electronic products, such as circuit boards.

Most commercial ethernet patch cables from coaxial cables to Ethernet are made of copper cores. However, although the underlying cable is copper, the connector at the end of the cable is covered by another metal, usually gold. Copper is an excellent conductor, but its corrosion resistance is not very good. Most copper conductors of any cable core wire are protected by dielectric and sheath. But the end of the internet patch cable still needs to conduct electricity, so the copper at the end is covered by another kind of corrosion-resistant conductive metal (gold), which is used. Direct contact between gold and copper loses luster, so there is usually another metal between the two, the most common of which is nickel.

How much does the type of metal matter?

There was a time when gold-plated cables were better than any other. Many e-shops, for example, recommend using gold-plated HDMI cables with new televisions or DVD players. All flat ethernet patch cable manufacturers have to comply with laws and regulations so far, despite HDMI gold plating in many places. These certification requirements ensure that ethernet network patch cables meet certain standards, including cable performance.

With the progress of technology, the new engineering technology can improve the quality of cross patch cord while reducing the use of conductive materials. Today's nickel plated cable is better than the gold plated cable 20 or 30 years ago. There are exceptions to this rule, most notably audio devices. Connectors can vary significantly in sound quality, depending on what material they are made of. But this is basically the only case in modern wiring where the type of metal plays a big role. Quality assurance standards tend to keep pace with technological advances and are reflected in many products today, including flat cat6 patch cables.