FCI® Releases Serial Attached SCSI Backplane Connectors

FCI has developed a broad offering of 29-position, vertical backplane receptacle connectors to enable the implementation of the new high-speed, Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) hard disk drive (HDD) interface that is replacing the SCSI drive connection in enterprise storage applications in servers and storage systems. FCI offers options for through-hole (TH) solder, press fit, surface mount (SMT), or hybrid (combinations of SMT and TM leads) termination allowing engineers to select the termination technique best suited to their backplane design and manufacturing process.

The SAS backplane receptacle connector is designed for hot plugging and blind mating of HDDs. Staggered contact lengths provide sequential mating of contacts to enable hot plugging. Molded guide posts provide angled lead-in to compensate for connector misalignment, allowing the device plug and backplane receptacle to self align during the mating process. Each backplane connector also features stamped retention clips that provide additional mechanical strength for robust PCB attachment. FCI also offers wide-base housing options for even more stability.

The high-speed, serial interface is designed to support differential signaling, initially at speeds of 3.0 Gbps. The SAS backplane receptacle accepts either SAS or SATA (Serial ATA) drives, giving the system manufacturer the option to plug either drive to a backplane.

Because both technologies have similar electrical interfaces, users have the choice of deploying cost-effective SATA drives for bulk storage or higher performance SAS drives for mission-critical applications.

"The SAS receptacle connector allows a system designer to utilize a versatile backplane design that has the capability to support both SAS and SATA technology. Vertical SAS connectors from FCI provide options for connector termination to help optimize backplane design and assembly," said FCI Global Product Manager Conway Spykerman.

SAS vertical backplane receptacle connectors are RoHS-compatible. Samples are available for delivery, with production lead times from stock to four weeks.

FCI offers a wide range of SATA and SAS plug and receptacle connectors encompassing both client and enterprise applications. Vertical and right angle connector configurations provide options for motherboard, server blade, HDD carrier, backplane, and cable connections.

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