Connector with capacitive crosstalk compensation to reduce alien crosstalk

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9768556-B2
Application number	US-201414211260-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 14, 2014
Priority date	Mar 15, 2013
Publication date	Sep 19, 2017
Grant date	Sep 19, 2017

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a telecommunications connector having cross-talk compensations, and a method of managing alien crosstalk in such a connector. In one example, the telecommunications connector includes electrical conductors arranged in differential pairs and a circuit board with conductive layers that provide a cross-talk compensation arrangement for applying capacitance between the electrical conductors. The circuit board includes conductive paths that provide capacitive coupling and a conductive plate that intensifies capacitive coupling of the electrical conductors. In another example, the telecommunications connector is used with a twisted pair system. Capacitances applied by the crosstalk compensation arrangement between electrical conductors associated with the pairs are provided such that, for each differential pair, a magnitude of an overall capacitance at a first electrical conductor of a differential pair is approximately equal to a magnitude of an overall capacitance at a second electrical conductor of the differential pair.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A telecommunications connector comprising:
a plurality of electrical conductors arranged in differential pairs;
a circuit board having a plurality of conductive layers, the plurality of conductive layers including a first conductive layer, a second conductive layer and a third conductive layer, the second conductive layer being positioned between the first and third conductive layers, the circuit board including a cross-talk compensation arrangement for applying capacitance between at least some of the electrical conductors, the cross-talk compensation arrangement including a plurality of open-ended conductive paths that provide a first capacitive coupling at a first discrete capacitive coupling location at the first conductive layer and a second capacitive coupling at a second discrete capacitive coupling location at the third conductive layer, the second conductive layer including a conductive plate positioned between the first and second discrete capacitive coupling locations, the conductive plate including a first surface that faces toward the first discrete capacitive coupling location and an opposite second surface that faces toward the second discrete capacitive coupling location, wherein the conductive plate and the first and second discrete capacitive coupling locations are relatively positioned such that: a) the first surface is adapted to reflect radiant energy from the first discrete capacitive coupling location back towards the first discrete capacitive coupling location to intensify the first capacitive coupling; and b) the second surface is adapted to reflect radiant energy from the second discrete capacitive coupling location back towards the second discrete capacitive coupling location to intensify the second capacitive coupling.

2. The telecommunications connector of claim 1 , wherein the conductive plate forms an electromagnetic shield between the first and second discrete capacitive coupling locations.

3. The telecommunications connector of claim 1 , wherein the conductive plate is a non-ohmic plate.

4. The telecommunications connector of claim 1 , wherein the conductive plate is an ohmic plate.

5. The telecommunications connector of claim 4 , wherein the conductive plate is electrically connected to a first open-ended conductive path of the plurality of open-ended conductive paths, and wherein the first open-ended conductive path is also electrically connected to capacitive elements provided at the first and second discrete capacitive coupling locations.

6. The telecommunications connector of claim 5 , wherein the capacitive elements include capacitor fingers.

7. The telecommunications connector of claim 1 , wherein the first and second discrete capacitive coupling locations include parallel capacitor fingers.

8. The telecommunications connector of claim 1 , wherein the conductive plate is a localized plate that coincides with less that 25 percent of a total area defined by an outline of the circuit board.

9. A telecommunications connector comprising:
a plurality of electrical conductors arranged in differential pairs;
a circuit board having a plurality of conductive layers, the plurality of conductive layers including a first conductive layer, a second conductive layer and a third conductive layer, the circuit board including a cross-talk compensation arrangement for applying capacitance between at least some of the electrical conductors, the cross-talk compensation arrangement including a plurality of open-ended conductive paths including conductive pads provided at the first conductive layer, the open-ended conductive paths also including conductive vias that extend between the first, second and third conductive layers and that intersect the conductive pads, the open-ended conductive paths providing a first capacitive coupling at a first discrete capacitive coupling location at the third conductive layer, the second conductive layer including a non-ohmic conductive plate having a first side that faces toward the first discrete capacitive coupling location, the first side and the first discrete capacitive coupling location being relatively positioned such that the first side is adapted to reflect radiant energy from the first discrete capacitive coupling location back towards the first discrete capacitive coupling location to intensify the first capacitive coupling, wherein overlap is provided between the conductive plate and at least some of the conductive pads, and wherein at least one of the conductive vias passes through the conductive plate without electrically connecting to the conductive plate.

10. The telecommunications connector of claim 9 , wherein the first discrete capacitive coupling location includes capacitor fingers, wherein overlap is provided between the capacitive fingers and at least some of the conductive pads.

11. The telecommunications connector of claim 9 , wherein the first discrete capacitive coupling location includes capacitor fingers, and wherein the conductive via that passes through the conductive plate intersects one of the capacitor fingers at an intermediate location along a length of the capacitor finger.

12. The telecommunications connector of claim 9 , wherein the electrical connector is a jack, wherein the electrical conductors include contact springs having free ends and fixed ends, and wherein the free ends of the contact springs contact the conductive pads.

13. A telecommunications jack comprising:
a front housing defining a plug port;
a circuit board positioned within the front housing;
first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth consecutively arranged electrical contact springs arranged in differential pairs;
the circuit board having a plurality of conductive layers, the plurality of conductive layers including a first conductive layer, a second conductive layer and a third conductive layer, the second conductive layer being positioned between the first and third conductive layers, the circuit board including a cross-talk compensation arrangement for applying capacitance between at least some of the electrical contact springs, the cross-talk compensation arrangement including a plurality of open-ended conductive paths that provide a first capacitive coupling at a first discrete capacitive coupling location at the first conductive layer and a second capacitive coupling at a second discrete capacitive coupling location at the third conductive layer, the first capacitive coupling being applied between the third and fifth electrical contact springs and the second capacitive coupling being applied between the third and seventh electrical contact springs, the second conductive layer including a conductive plate positioned between the first and second discrete capacitive coupling locations, the conductive plate being an ohmic plate that is electrically connected to the third electrical contact spring, the conductive plate including a first surface that faces toward the first discrete capacitive coupling location and an opposite second surface that faces toward the second discrete capacitive coupling location, wherein the conductive plate and the first and second discrete capacitive coupling locations are relatively positioned such that: a) the first surface is adapted to reflect radiant energy from the first discrete capacitive coupling location back towards the first discrete capacitive coupling location to intensify the first capacitive coupling; and b) the second surface is adapted to reflect radiant energy from the second discrete capacitive coupling location back towards the second discrete capacitive coupling location to intensify the second capacitive coupling.

Assignees

• Tyco Electronics Corp
• Tyco Electronics Ltd Uk
• Commscope Technologies Llc
• Commscope Connectivity Uk Ltd

Inventors

• Bopp Steven Richard
• Hammond Jr Bernard Harold

Classifications

• H01R24/64

  for high frequency, e.g. RJ 45 · CPC title

• H01R4/2433

  one part of the base being movable to push the cable into the slot · CPC title

• H01R13/6466 Primary

  on substrates, e.g. printed circuit boards [PCB] · CPC title