Electronics > Beginners

New-to-me power connector

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elroy:
I just bought a small RF preamp from an online seller in China. The RF in and out are via standard SMA ports.

For the +12vdc and ground, a connector is provided that consists of a hexagonal nut, a protruding pin ~5mm long that I assume is for the ~12vdc, and a side lug with a solder hole which must be for ground.

Now, I could just solder appropriate-gauge wires to the pin and the lug and call it a day. But is there any smarter way to attach to a connector like this?

Brumby:
It's not really a connector, as  such, but it is being used in that role.  It's an RF "feed through" which is simply a coaxial conductor running through an insulating material inside a metal body.

It is not uncommon to see feed-throughs used in RF equipment as it allows a controlled entry/exit of connections through a shielded enclosure.  Dave has done at least one teardown of an oscilloscope which show this.

While I'm not an RF guy, I can see they offer some useful advantages:
 * Hermetic seal.  No issues with moisture ingress or humidity changes
 * Fixed capacitance, which can help in circuit design

Yes, the simplest method of connection is soldering.  My first thought would be to use a coaxial style cable between this preamp and your power supply - but maybe an RF person could offer a more informed suggestion and whether a connector option is available.

ArthurDent:
The power is soldered to a feedthru capacitor. Here is a similar one. Some are straight pins, some are like mine.

David Hess:
They make big machined collet socket pins which can fit on a lead like that but usually a wire connection is just soldered to it.

edpalmer42:

--- Quote from: ArthurDent on July 12, 2019, 01:19:32 am ---The power is soldered to a feedthru capacitor. Here is a similar one. Some are straight pins, some are like mine.

--- End quote ---

I've seen both 'feedthru capacitors' and just 'feedthru' versions.  Often, a feedthru capacitor will have a value printed or stamped on it.

Ed

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