Compendium

Connector Families — Family Index

18 min read

Connector Families — Family Index

Electrical connectors mediate every signal and power path that crosses a board, harness, panel, or chassis boundary. The family chosen sets mating cycles, contact resistance, current rating, bandwidth, sealing class, vibration tolerance, and unit cost more than any other harness decision. This index maps the dominant families by application, pitch, contact density, and environment, with real product lines and selection heuristics for each.

1. At a glance — by application

By application class:

  • Signal, board-board — high-density mezzanine and stacking. Pitch 0.4-0.8 mm; 20-400 pins; current 0.3-0.5 A/pin. Molex SlimStack, Hirose DF40, Samtec QSE/QFS, JAE WP, TE Z-Pack.
  • Signal, wire-board — IDC headers, crimp-receptacle housings. Pitch 1.0-2.54 mm; 2-50 pins; 1-3 A/pin. JST PH/XH/GH, Molex KK/Micro-Fit/Mini-Fit Jr, TE AMPMODU.
  • Signal, wire-wire — inline crimp splices, harness joins. Deutsch DT, AMP Superseal, JST JWPF, Aptiv GT.
  • Power, low current (≤10 A) — Mini-Fit Jr, EC3, XT30, Powerpole 15/30. Single contacts up to 13 A.
  • Power, medium current (10-100 A) — XT60/XT90, Powerpole 45/75, Anderson SB50/SB120.
  • Power, high current (100-2000 A) — Anderson SB350, Amphenol PowerLok PL082/261, Rosenberger HV-Box, busbar lugs.
  • RF coaxial — 50 Ω signal: SMA, N, BNC, 2.92/2.4/1.85 mm precision; 75 Ω video/CATV: F, BNC-75; low-PIM cellular: 7/16 DIN, 4.3-10. Waveguide (WR-90, WR-28, WR-15) above ~40 GHz where coax loss dominates.
  • Automotive — sealed crimp families optimized for vibration (10-2000 Hz, 30 g), thermal cycling (−40 to +125 °C), and IP67/IP69K. Deutsch DT, AMP Superseal, Aptiv GT, Sumitomo HW/HX, Yazaki YESC.
  • Industrial M-series — IP67/68 circular, screw or push-pull. M5/M8/M12/M16/M23/M40/M58 per IEC 61076.
  • Data — USB / HDMI / DP / fiber — application-locked by standard. USB Type-A/B/C, HDMI Type-A/C/D, DisplayPort, SATA, M.2, SFP/QSFP cages, LC/SC/MPO fiber.
  • Mil-spec / aerospace — MIL-DTL-38999 series I/II/III/IV (dominant), MIL-DTL-26482, MIL-DTL-5015 (legacy heavy), ARINC 600/404 (avionics rack).

By contact density:

  • 1-2 pin power — bullet, Powerpole, XT60, ring-lug terminal.
  • 2-50 pin signal — JST/Molex IDC, Deutsch DT, M12, D-sub 9/15/25/37, mil-spec 38999 shells 9-25.
  • 50-200 pin signal — D-sub 50/62/104, mil-spec 38999 shell 25, ARINC 600, board-board mezzanines.
  • 200-2000 pin board-board — LGA/BGA semiconductor sockets (CPU sockets LGA1700/AM5/SP5, GPU MXM), DDR5 DIMM 288-pin, server backplane. See [[Engineering/Tier3/semiconductor-packages]].

2. Wire-board low-cost signal

The “JST connector” family is broader than one part. Real product lines:

  • JST PH — 2.0 mm pitch, 2-16 pin, no latch on housing (friction-only). The de-facto hobby drone, breakout-board, and Arduino-shield connector. Current 2 A per circuit, AWG 32-26 wire.
  • JST XH — 2.5 mm pitch, 2-20 pin, locking ramp. Universal RC LiPo balance lead — 2S battery uses 3-pin XH, 6S uses 7-pin XH. Current 3 A.
  • JST GH — 1.25 mm pitch, positive latch, gold contacts. Smaller and more vibration-tolerant than PH; dominant on racing-drone flight controllers (Betaflight ecosystem) and UAV peripherals.
  • JST SH — 1.0 mm pitch, ultra-fine; used for QWIIC/STEMMA-QT I²C modules.
  • JST ZH — 1.5 mm pitch, between SH and GH.

Molex wire-board:

  • Molex KK — 2.54 mm (KK 254) and 3.96 mm (KK 396) classic dev-board. Single-row, friction-latch, AWG 22-30. The “Berg” / “header” connector on early PCs.
  • Molex Micro-Fit 3.0 — 3.0 mm pitch, dual-row, 2-24 circuit; rated 8.5 A/pin. The ATX-style internal power connector (modern fans, SSDs, automotive infotainment).
  • Molex Mini-Fit Jr — 4.2 mm pitch, 9 A/pin; the ATX 24-pin motherboard connector, PCIe 6/8-pin GPU power, CPU EPS 4+4.
  • Molex Mini-Fit Sr / Plus HCS — 5.7 mm, 23 A/pin; used in server PDUs and large appliances.
  • Molex Pico-Lock / Pico-Clasp / PicoBlade — 1.0/1.25/1.5 mm, latch variants for compact wire-board.

TE / AMP:

  • AMP Mate-N-Lok — 5.08 mm pitch, the classic 1980s-90s PC drive 4-pin Molex power.
  • AMPMODU — 0.8/1.0/1.27/2.0/2.5/2.54 mm wire-board lines.
  • AMP MTA-100/MTA-156 — IDC ribbon-to-board.
  • Bergstik 0.1″ — TE/Amphenol 2.54 mm pin headers — the universal “header pins” sold by every distributor.

Pin-pitch ladder (mm): 0.4 / 0.5 / 0.635 / 0.8 / 1.0 / 1.25 / 1.27 (0.05″) / 1.5 / 2.0 / 2.5 / 2.54 (0.1″) / 3.0 / 3.5 / 3.96 / 4.2 / 5.0 / 5.08 / 5.7 / 6.35.

3. Board-board

High-density mezzanine and stacking, no wire:

  • Molex SlimStack — 0.4 / 0.5 mm pitch, 0.7-1.2 mm stack height; smartphone main-board to camera/display.
  • Hirose DF40 — 0.4 mm pitch, stack height 1.5-4.0 mm; widely used in consumer SOMs (e.g., NVIDIA Jetson Nano edge connectors are DF40 derivatives).
  • JAE WP series — 0.4 / 0.5 mm pitch, ruggedized.
  • TE Z-Pack TinMan / Z-PACK 2mm HM — VPX, ATCA backplane (high-speed differential).
  • Samtec QSE/QFS — 0.8 mm pitch high-speed (PCIe Gen5, 56G PAM4).
  • Samtec ERM/ERF, SEAM/SEAF — 0.5/0.8/1.27 mm rugged mezzanine.
  • Erni MicroSpeed / SMC — 0.8 / 1.0 mm pitch.

FFC / FPC — flat-flex flat-flex cable connectors:

  • Molex 200528 / FFC Easy-On — 0.5 / 1.0 mm pitch, ZIF (zero insertion force) or non-ZIF.
  • Hirose FH series (FH12, FH28, FH35) — 0.3 / 0.5 mm pitch ZIF; the laptop LCD cable connector and trackpad ribbon.
  • Common pitches: 0.3 / 0.5 / 1.0 mm. Pin counts 4-100.

4. Power — low to medium current (1-100 A)

  • Anderson Powerpole — genderless hermaphroditic 15/30/45 A (PP15/30/45) and the heavier SB-series. Standardized as the amateur radio (ARRL) DC power interconnect, the e-bike battery interconnect, and the drone-race lane power. Red+black snap together; finger-safe.
  • XT60 / XT90 / XT30 — bullet-style, banana-derived; 30/60/90 A continuous. XT60 dominates 3-6S RC LiPo. XT90 is for higher-cell-count or e-bike. XT30 for small drones / 2S packs. Anti-spark variants (XT90-S) have a pre-charge resistor.
  • EC3 / EC5 — 3 mm / 5 mm bullets in plastic housing — older RC-aircraft connector, displaced by XT60.
  • MR60 / MR30 — anti-spark, polarized — current-gen race drone packs.
  • MT60 — 3.5 mm three-bullet ESC-to-motor; common in race drones because phase-swap is trivial.
  • Bullet connectors — 2.0 / 3.5 / 4.0 / 5.5 / 6.0 / 8.0 mm; raw current 15-200 A; ESC to brushless motor.
  • IEC 60320 — appliance inlet/outlet: C13/C14 (kettle / PC, 10 A), C19/C20 (server / high-power, 16 A), C5/C6 (Mickey-Mouse laptop), C7/C8 (figure-8). The “cold” connectors (C13) and “hot” (C15, with notch — kettle/PoE switch).
  • NEMA 5-15 / 5-20 / L5-30 / L6-30 / 14-50 — North American AC plug standards.
  • CEE 7/4 (Schuko), CEE 7/16 (Europlug), BS 1363 (UK), AS/NZS 3112 — regional AC.
  • Wago 221 / 222 / 224 (lever-latch) — lever-actuated push-in for solid + stranded 4-6 mm² wire; the modern wire-nut replacement.
  • Phoenix Contact MSTB / COMBICON — 3.5 / 3.81 / 5.0 / 5.08 / 7.5 / 7.62 mm pitch pluggable terminal block with screw or push-in clamp; ubiquitous on PLCs and industrial PSUs.

5. Industrial circular (M-series)

Per IEC 61076-2-101 / -109 / -111 / -113, threaded metric circulars:

  • M5 — sub-miniature, 3-4 pin; ultra-compact prox sensors.
  • M8 — 3/4/5/8 pin; smart-sensor signal + DC power 60 V, 4 A. The “snap-in” variant (M8K snap-on) avoids threaded-mate time in production lines.
  • M12 — the industrial workhorse, 4-17 pin, screw-thread (8 mm/turn pitch). Coding ensures cross-incompatibility:
    • A-code — 3/4/5/8 pin, DC sensor/actuator (the legacy/default).
    • B-code — 5 pin, Profibus / fieldbus.
    • C-code — 4/5 pin, AC sensor up to 600 V.
    • D-code — 4 pin, 100 Mbit Industrial Ethernet (Profinet / Ethernet/IP).
    • X-code — 8 pin, Cat6A Gigabit and 10G Ethernet (ISO/IEC 61076-2-109) — replacing D-code on new installs.
    • K-code — 5 pin, AC 630 V power.
    • L-code — 4+FE pin, DC power 63 V, 16 A — Profinet device power.
    • M-code — 4+FE pin, 3-phase AC up to 630 V / 16 A.
    • S/T-code — 3+PE / 4+PE AC power.
    • Y-code — hybrid Ethernet + power (Single Pair Ethernet pending).
  • M16 — Phoenix DIN 41524-style; 3-19 pin; older audio-broadcast and lab.
  • M23 — 12/17/19 pin servo signal + power+feedback in one housing. Heidenhain encoder, Beckhoff EL-series drives, Phoenix CombiCon SPEEDCON. Up to 800 V / 30 A.
  • M40 / M58 — heavy power, 200-630 A drive cables.

Manufacturers: Phoenix Contact, Harting, Lumberg, Murr Elektronik, Binder, Weidmüller, TE Buccaneer.

6. Automotive sealed

Signal / low-power harness (under 100 V):

  • Deutsch DT / DTM / DTP / DTHD / DTV — TE Connectivity since 2012 acquisition (founded 1990s, military origin). DT 2/3/4/6/8/12 pin; DTM smaller; DTP 25 A heavy-current 2/4 pin; DTHD heavy duty (high temp). IP67/IP68 with green silicone seal. Defacto for off-road / 4x4 / Jeep / military land / Polaris / John Deere / agricultural. Crimp-only stamped-and-formed contacts; no solder.
  • AMP Superseal 1.0 / 1.5 — TE; 1.0/1.5 mm pin diameter, 2-6 pin, IP67. European automotive under-hood standard; OEM at VW, BMW, Mercedes.
  • TE MQS (Micro Quadlock System) — 0.63 mm contact; high-density signal.
  • Yazaki YESC / 040 / 060 / 090 / 250 — Japanese auto OEM (Toyota, Honda).
  • Aptiv (Delphi) GT-series — GT150 / GT280 / GT800. Replaces Packard Metri-Pack in modern GM/Stellantis.
  • Sumitomo HX / HW / TS — Honda, Subaru.
  • Molex MX150 / MX150L — 1.5 mm sealed, US OEM.
  • JST JFA / JWPF / WP / VLP / SVH — sealed Japanese-auto-style.
  • JAE MX-series / IL-AG / IL-Z — Japan.
  • Hirose DF13 — small-board automotive infotainment (also widely in UAV).

Sealing: most are IP67 (1 m water 30 min) or IP69K (high-pressure steam jet, ISO 20653).

Automotive HV (EV battery, inverter, charger — 400-1000 V DC, 100-500 A):

  • Rosenberger HV-Box — 1-3 pin sealed, HVIL (high-voltage interlock loop) integrated, finger-safe IPXXB.
  • TE HVA800 / HVA280 — high-voltage automotive.
  • Amphenol PowerLok PL082, PL161, PL261 — bolt-down high current.
  • Yazaki HV-series.
  • Aptiv GT800 / High-Voltage.

EV DC fast-charging plugs (vehicle-side):

  • CCS-1 (SAE J1772 Combo, North America before 2024) — J1772 AC top + 2 DC pins bottom.
  • CCS-2 (IEC 62196-3, Europe) — Type-2 AC top + 2 DC pins bottom.
  • NACS / SAE J3400 — Tesla’s connector standardized in 2023; adopted by Ford, GM, Rivian, Hyundai-Kia, Stellantis on 2025-26 models; supersedes CCS-1 in North America.
  • CHAdeMO — Japan / older Nissan Leaf; declining outside Japan.
  • GB/T 20234 — China DC standard.
  • MCS (Megawatt Charging System) — SAE J3271, commercial truck DC fast charge, 1.25 MW (1000 V × 1250 A).

7. Mil-spec / aerospace circular

  • MIL-DTL-38999 — the dominant aerospace circular family, series I (bayonet), II (threaded, less common), III (triple-start threaded, self-locking, vibration-immune — most used), IV (breech-coupling). Shell sizes 9-25 (about 11-44 mm). Pin counts 1-128. Operating −65 to +200 °C. Manufacturers: Amphenol, TE-Deutsch, ITT Cannon, Glenair, Souriau-Eaton, Conesys.
  • MIL-DTL-26482 — smaller, older bayonet/threaded; series 1 and 2.
  • MIL-DTL-5015 — legacy heavy-duty (1940s), still in ground-support equipment and industrial; threaded.
  • MIL-DTL-26500 — bayonet, older.
  • MIL-DTL-83723 — bayonet/threaded; firewall-rated for engines.
  • ARINC 600 — avionics rack mount, modular, up to 600 contacts (sizes 1-3).
  • ARINC 404 — older rectangular avionics, predecessor to 600.
  • ARINC 801 — fiber-optic avionics.
  • HARWIN M40 / M55 / M80 / M300 — high-rel commercial-equivalent, smaller and lighter than 38999.

Backshells (the part that holds the cable shield): straight, 45°, 90°; with 360° EMI braid termination; with environmental seal (heat-shrink boot transition).

8. RF coaxial

Selection axes: impedance (50 / 75 Ω), upper frequency, size, power, durability.

50 Ω lab and general RF:

  • BNC — bayonet 4 GHz (50 Ω); also 75 Ω variant for SDI/video (visually identical — measure or check label). Lab oscilloscope default. Mating cycles 500-1000.
  • TNC — threaded BNC, 11 GHz; more vibration-tolerant than BNC. Common on military radios, GPS antennas.
  • N (Type N) — threaded medium-power; 11 GHz precision-grade up to 18 GHz; up to 300 W. WiFi base-station antennas, lab signal generators.
  • SMA — threaded 1/4-36, 18 GHz (stainless steel; 22-24 GHz on precision). The bench-RF default. Brass SMA is ~12 GHz only.
  • RP-SMA (reverse-polarity SMA) — center pin/socket genders swapped per FCC mandate on consumer WiFi routers (1990s).
  • SMB / SMC — snap-on / threaded miniatures, ~4-10 GHz, common in lab + automotive radio.
  • MCX / MMCX — 1/2 size of SMB; mating jacks for GPS modules, SDR dongles.
  • SMP / SMPM / SMPS (mini-SMP) — push-on, 40-65-110 GHz; blind-mate for board-board RF.

Precision mm-wave:

  • 2.92 mm (K connector) — Anritsu trade name. 40 GHz; mates with SMA mechanically (carefully).
  • 2.4 mm — 50 GHz; not mate-compatible with SMA.
  • 1.85 mm (V connector) — 67 GHz; mates with 2.4 mm.
  • 1.0 mm (W / 0 connector) — 110 GHz; Maury / Anritsu / Keysight; wafer probes.

Board-mount micro-coax (laptop / phone / WiFi pigtail to antenna):

  • U.FL / IPEX MHF1 — 0.81 mm coax tab; 6 GHz typical.
  • MHF2 / IPEX-2 — 6 GHz.
  • MHF3 / IPEX-3 — 9 GHz.
  • MHF4 / IPEX-4 — 15 GHz; modern laptops Wi-Fi 6E/7.
  • MHF7 — for FR2 mmWave 5G.
  • TS9 — early USB cellular dongles.

High-power / low-PIM cellular:

  • 7/16 DIN — large, robust; 7.5 GHz; outdoor cellular base station, ground broadcast (still legacy in some installs).
  • 4.3-10 — the modern low-PIM replacement for 7/16 DIN; smaller, screw or push-pull, 6 GHz, PIM −165 dBc.
  • NEX10 — quick-lock low-PIM.

75 Ω video / CATV:

  • F-connector — threaded; CATV / antenna / satellite.
  • BNC-75 — broadcast video (HD-SDI, 3G-SDI, 12G-SDI for UHD).
  • DIN 1.0/2.3 — small 75-Ω; broadcast SDI mux.

Waveguide (frequencies above where coax loss is excessive):

  • WR-90 — 8.2-12.4 GHz (X-band).
  • WR-42 / WR-28 / WR-22 / WR-15 / WR-10 / WR-3 — up to 1.1 THz with WR-1.5/1.0/0.65 sub-mm.

9. Data — USB / HDMI / DP / SATA

  • USB Type-A — host side, USB 1.1/2.0/3.0/3.1 backward compat; 5×12 mm cross-section.
  • USB Type-B — device square; printers and powered hubs.
  • USB Mini-B — older small device (camera, early portable hard drives).
  • USB Micro-B — smartphones 2007-2017; also Micro-B 3.0 with extra 5 pins.
  • USB Type-C — 24-pin reversible since 2014; carries USB 2.0 + USB 3.2 Gen 1×2 / 2×2 / 4 (40 Gbps), DisplayPort Alt Mode, Thunderbolt 3/4/5, USB-PD up to 240 W (PD 3.1 EPR). Pin count: A1-A12 + B1-B12.
  • HDMI Type-A (standard 19-pin), Type-C (mini), Type-D (micro), Type-E (auto locking). HDMI 2.1 = 48 Gbps FRL.
  • DisplayPort (20-pin full size, Mini-DP); DP 2.1 UHBR20 = 80 Gbps.
  • SATA (data 7-pin + power 15-pin L-shaped), SAS, U.2 / SFF-8639, M.2 with B-key, M-key, B+M (PCIe NVMe).
  • PCIe edge-card — x1 (36 contacts), x4 (64), x8 (98), x16 (164).

Pluggable transceiver cages (data-center optics + DAC):

  • SFP — 1 Gbps.
  • SFP+ — 10 Gbps.
  • SFP28 / SFP56 — 25 / 50 Gbps PAM4.
  • QSFP+ — 40 Gbps (4×10).
  • QSFP28 — 100 Gbps (4×25).
  • QSFP56 — 200 Gbps (4×50 PAM4).
  • QSFP-DD — 400 Gbps (8×50 PAM4).
  • QSFP-DD800 / OSFP — 800 Gbps (8×100 PAM4).
  • CFP / CFP2 / CFP4 — older 100 G.

MXM — mobile PCIe edge for laptop discrete GPUs; type-A/B 3.x.

10. Ethernet / data center

  • RJ-45 8P8C — 0.250″ pitch, latching tab; Cat5e (100 MHz, 1 Gbps), Cat6 (250 MHz, 10 Gbps to 55 m), Cat6A (500 MHz, 10 Gbps to 100 m), Cat7 (600 MHz, GG45 or TERA jack, mostly Europe), Cat8 (2 GHz, 25/40 G, 30 m, data-center patch). Shielded variants: STP, F/UTP, S/FTP.
  • M12 D-code — IEC 61076-2-109, 100 Mbps Industrial Ethernet.
  • M12 X-code — Cat6A Gigabit and 10G; replacing D-code on new industrial Ethernet.
  • GG45 / TERA — Cat7/7A backward-compat with RJ45.
  • MTP / MPO — multi-fiber push-on, 12 / 24 / 32 / 72 fibers in a ribbon; data-center backbone, 40G/100G/400G QSFP breakout.
  • LC (1.25 mm ferrule), SC (2.5 mm ferrule), ST (bayonet), FC (threaded telecom) — duplex fiber.
  • MDC / SN / CS / MMC — “very small form factor” fiber for high-density 400G/800G QSFP-DD breakout, OSFP, and CPO front-panel.
  • Single Pair Ethernet (SPE) — IEC 63171, 10BASE-T1L / 100BASE-T1 / 1000BASE-T1; one twisted pair + power; automotive 100/1000BASE-T1 in-vehicle and IEC 63171-6 (industrial T1).

11. Battery + charging

  • JST XH balance lead — RC LiPo (2S = 3-pin, 6S = 7-pin); not load-rated.
  • JST PH — small Li-ion (Adafruit Feather, 1S 500 mAh).
  • JST RCY (Tamiya old) — discontinued from race use.
  • Anderson SB-series — SB50 (50 A), SB120 (120 A), SB175 (175 A), SB350 (350 A); forklift, marine, off-grid solar.
  • Anderson SBS / SBE — 50-160 A, finger-safe variants.
  • HV automotive — see Section 6.

Charging plugs at the vehicle (see Section 6 also): CCS-1, CCS-2, J3400 NACS, CHAdeMO, GB/T, MCS.

AC charge-only: SAE J1772 Type-1 (NA, 1-phase), IEC 62196 Type-2 / Mennekes (EU, 1- or 3-phase, 22-43 kW).

12. PCB edge / sockets

  • DIMM 288-pin — DDR5.
  • DIMM 260-pin SO-DIMM — DDR4/DDR5 laptop and small-form-factor.
  • CAMM2 LPCAMM2 — 2023+ flat memory replacement for SO-DIMM.
  • M.2 — B-key (SATA + PCIe x2), M-key (PCIe x4 NVMe), B+M (universal), A/E-key (WiFi/BT 2230).
  • PCIe edge — x1 / x4 / x8 / x16; also CEM5 12VHPWR (the “16-pin GPU power” issue).
  • SD / microSD — push-push tray.
  • USIM / nano-SIM / eSIM — push-push or hinged tray.
  • CFexpress / XQD / CFast — pro-camera media.

13. Sealed / harsh-environment

  • Glenair Series 32 SuperGreen — composite-shell mil-spec 38999 replacement; lightweight.
  • Souriau 8STA — bayonet, military fast-mate.
  • ITT Cannon KPSE — composite shell, lower weight than aluminum 38999.
  • Lemo B-series Push-Pull — self-aligning latch; the lab + medical default for 2-32 pin signal. Mate by axial push; release by pulling collar. K, F, R, S, T series variants. Used on EEG / ECG / studio cameras (HD-SDI on Lemo 1B) / industrial test.
  • Lemo Redel / 7P — polymer plastic Push-Pull for medical/disposable.
  • Fischer Core / UltiMate / FiberOptic — Swiss Push-Pull, similar niche to Lemo.
  • Hirschmann CA-series — German DIN circular for sensors.
  • ODU MAC / Mini-Snap / AMC — rectangular Push-Pull (mil-spec replacement for some 38999 use), and modular rack blind-mate.

Sealing classes — see [[Engineering/Tier3/seals-taxonomy]] for full coverage:

  • IP67 — 1 m water, 30 min; dust-tight.
  • IP68 — manufacturer-defined depth (typically 2-5 m).
  • IP69K — 80 °C high-pressure water jet 80-100 bar; ISO 20653. Required for food / pharma washdown and heavy-vehicle off-road.

EMI shielding adds a 360° backshell with conductive elastomer or finger-spring at the backshell-to-cable joint, terminating tinned-copper or stainless braid; and a chassis-side EMI gasket (BeCu finger or conductive elastomer).

14. Hermetic / vacuum / cryo

  • Glass-to-metal seal D-sub (Glenair, Schott, Hermetic Solutions) — soldered glass dielectric; 10⁻⁹ atm·cc/s helium leak. Used on rocket engines, vacuum chambers, satellites.
  • Conflat (CF) / Kwik-Flange (KF/NW) feedthroughs — vacuum-tight bolt or clamp; standard sizes CF16/25/40/63/100/150, KF/NW16/25/40/50.
  • Cryogenic — phosphor bronze (PhBz) or Manganin wire for low thermal conductivity; pin material constrained by 4 K operation; superconducting NbTi traces for dilution-fridge wiring.
  • Hermetic feedthrough connector standards: MIL-DTL-38999H (hermetic suffix), Glenair Hermetics, Schott Eternaloc.
  • EMC-shielded harness uses 360° backshell + tinned-Cu braid with 85-95% coverage + ferrite cores at I/O.

15. Selection heuristics

Use caseFirst-choice family
Hobby breadboard / 0.1″ header dev2.54 mm Bergstik pin header + IDC ribbon
RC LiPo battery main leadXT60 (3-4S 30A) or XT90 (5-6S 60A)
RC LiPo balanceJST XH (N+1 pins for N-cell)
Drone flight-controller signalJST GH or Hirose DF13
Sealed off-road / agricultural / utilityDeutsch DT family
Under-hood automotive OEMAMP Superseal 1.5 (EU), Aptiv GT (US), Sumitomo HW (JP)
Automotive HV battery / inverterAmphenol PowerLok, Rosenberger HV-Box, TE HVA800
Industrial robot encoderM12 8-pin A-code or M23 17-pin servo
Industrial Gbit EthernetM12 X-code (replacing D-code on new designs)
Aerospace airframe harnessMIL-DTL-38999 series III
RF lab signal generator outSMA (≤18 GHz) or N (≥10 W)
mm-wave wafer probe1.85 mm (V) up to 67 GHz; 1.0 mm to 110 GHz
Cellular base-station antenna4.3-10 (modern) or 7/16 DIN (legacy) low-PIM
Laptop WiFi pigtail to antennaMHF4 / IPEX-4
Medical 5-pin sensorLemo B-series Push-Pull
Studio camera HD-SDIBNC-75 (precision) or Lemo 1B fiber
100 GbE data center opticalQSFP28 (LR4/SR4)
400 GbE data center opticalQSFP-DD or OSFP
EV CCS charge inlet (NA, 2024-)NACS / SAE J3400

16. Cross-references

  • [[Engineering/pcb-design]] — how connectors map to PCB pads, footprint libraries, mating-cycle vs. trace-pitch.
  • [[Engineering/Tier3/passive-components]] — terminating resistors, common-mode chokes at connectors.
  • [[Engineering/Tier3/semiconductor-packages]] — BGA / LGA / sockets, board-board pin counts above 200.
  • [[Engineering/Tier3/pcb-substrates]] — controlled impedance for board-board high-speed (PCIe Gen5, 56G PAM4).
  • [[Engineering/Tier3/seals-taxonomy]] — IP / IPXXB / IK ratings and gasket cross-section design.
  • [[Engineering/Tier3/connector-families]] — strain relief, bend radius, lacing, conduit, EMI braid termination.

17. Citations

  • IEC 61076 series — connectors for electronic equipment, including -2-101 (M-coded circular), -2-109 (M12 X-code 10G Ethernet), -2-111 (M5/M8), -2-113 (M12 push-pull SPEEDCON).
  • MIL-DTL-38999 / -26482 / -5015 / -83723 / -26500 — US military performance specs for circular connectors; available via ASSIST docs.
  • SAE / USCAR-2 Rev 6 — performance specification for automotive electrical connector systems; sealing, vibration, thermal cycle.
  • SAE J3400 — North American Charging Standard (NACS) connector.
  • IEC 62196-1 / -2 / -3 — EV connector standards; Type-1, Type-2, CCS-1, CCS-2.
  • SAE J3271 — Megawatt Charging System (MCS).
  • USB-IF USB 3.2 / USB4 specifications; USB Type-C Cable and Connector Specification 2.x.
  • HDMI 2.1 specification; VESA DisplayPort 2.1; SFF-8639 (U.2), SFF-TA-1002 (PCIe CEM 5.0 EDSFF), SFF-TA-1023 (12VHPWR / 12V-2x6).
  • IEC 60529 (IP rating), ISO 20653 (IP69K for road vehicles).
  • IEC 60320 appliance couplers.
  • ARINC 600 modular avionics rack interconnect.
  • ANSI/TIA-568 — Cat5e/6/6A/8 cabling.
  • Manufacturer catalogs: Amphenol RF, TE Connectivity (Deutsch, AMP, AMPMODU, Z-Pack), Molex (KK, Micro-Fit, Mini-Fit, SlimStack), JST (PH/XH/GH/SH/ZH), JAE, Hirose, Samtec, Phoenix Contact, Harting (M12), Glenair, ITT Cannon, Souriau-Eaton, Lemo, ODU, Rosenberger, Yazaki, Sumitomo, Aptiv.

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