PREFACE

Today’s communication technology requires the transmission of increasingly higher data rates, driving the need for enhanced hardware to preserve signal integrity in these systems. The system designer is challenged to maximize system performance by balancing three interacting components to maximize system performance: • Integrated circuit chips • Multi-layer boards • Interconnect systemsFCI recognizes that the interconnection of complex subsystems is a crucial factor in the design of data and communications equipment. To meet evolving high-speed performance requirements, we have developed a comprehensive line of two-piece mezzanine connectors. These interconnects provide several levels of performance versus signal density across a wide range of board-to-board stack heights to ensure the proper price and performance objectives are met for a system design. The basic level of performance is provided by the MEG-Array
® connector system. These connectors are designed for single ended, as well as differential applications for stack heights between 4 and 14mm. The GIG-Array
® connector family offers enhanced performance for differential applications where a board-to-board spacing of 15 to 40mm is needed.This manual is designed to assist the designer with the selection of the optimal mezzanine connector solution to meet a defined application need. • Section 1 introduces some important terms and concepts used throughout the manual. • Section 2 is a summary table comparing the electrical performance for selected stack heights in the two connector families • Sections 3 and 4 present moredetailed measured data that characterizes the high-speed electrical performance of the MEG-Array
® and GIG-Array
® connector families. • Section 5 contains Dimensional Outline Tables • Section 6 lists Web Links to additional technical documents for these connector familiesWe hope you will find this guide to be helpful in selecting the proper FCI Mezzanine connectors to meet your application requirements.

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