CN118117360A

CN118117360A - Small-sized high-speed interposer

Info

Publication number: CN118117360A
Application number: CN202311618487.5A
Authority: CN
Inventors: T·K·杜; J·希尔曼; P·R·泰勒; M·S·埃曼海泽
Original assignee: Amphenol Corp
Current assignee: Amphenol Corp
Priority date: 2022-11-29
Filing date: 2023-11-29
Publication date: 2024-05-31

Abstract

A compact interposer having a shield and a plurality of electrical contacts held in a housing. Each shield is compact, is disposed in a vertical plane perpendicular to the top and bottom surfaces of the housing, and is located between two adjacent electrical contacts on opposite sides of the shield, respectively. The shield includes a plurality of shield contacts that extend above the top surface of the housing and/or extend below the bottom surface. During operation, the shield is configured to reduce crosstalk between high-speed signals carried in the electrical contacts on opposite sides of the shield. Optionally, the shield contact may be configured to contact the shield body when in a compressed state to tap a distal end of the shield contact. The shield body and the shield contacts may be stamped from the same sheet of metal. The shield contacts may have characteristics that allow the intermediate member to operate reliably.

Description

Small-sized high-speed interposer

Cross Reference to Related Applications

The present application claims priority and benefit from U.S. provisional application No. 63/514,718 entitled, "MINIATURIZED HIGH-SPEED INTERPOSER (small high speed interposer)" filed on 7/20 of 2023. The present application also claims priority and benefit from U.S. provisional application No. 63/428,669 entitled "MINIATURIZED HIGH-SPEED INTERPOSER (small high speed interposer)" filed on 11/29 of 2022. The entire contents of these applications are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

Technical Field

The present application relates generally to interconnect systems for interconnecting electronic components, such as those including electrical connectors.

Background

Electrical connectors are used in many electronic systems. It is generally easier and more cost-effective to manufacture the system as separate components that are electrically connected through separable interfaces. By means of the separable interface, the components can be manufactured separately and then easily assembled into the whole system. In use, components may be added or replaced in an electronic system, for example, to replace defective components or to enable higher performance components to be added to the system to upgrade the electronic system.

In some cases, the component itself is a subassembly that is typically manufactured by connecting semiconductor devices and other components to a Printed Circuit Board (PCB). The electronic system may then be assembled by joining the subassemblies. For this purpose, a two-piece connector is typically used, with one of the connectors mounted on the PCB of each of the two subassemblies to be joined. The subassemblies are connected by mating one piece of the connector with another.

The components may also be connected by an interposer. The interposer has one or more separable interfaces. The separable interface mated with the component may have a flat array of compliant contacts (PLANAR ARRAY). The component may be mated to the interposer by pressing the component against the compliant contact. For example, a semiconductor device such as a processor chip may have an array of pads or other conductive structures on a surface. The pads may be aligned with compliant contacts of the interposer such that pressing the device against the interposer may establish a connection between the compliant contacts and the pads or other conductive structures.

Each compliant contact may extend through the interposer to an opposite surface where a second end of the contact is connected to the second component. In many system architectures, the second component may be a PCB, which may also include a pad array to which the second ends of the contacts of the interposer are connected. These connections may be established through compliant contacts on the second ends of the contacts, thereby forming separable interfaces. Optionally, in some intermediaries, the second end is fixed to the second component, for example by soldering to the PCB.

The interposer may be used in combination with mechanical components that urge one or more components toward the separable interface(s) of the interposer. For example, an interposer connecting a semiconductor chip to a PCB may be used in combination with a component that presses the semiconductor chip toward a separable interface of the interposer. The mechanical component may also press the interposer against the PCB if the interposer is connected to the PCB through a separable interface, such that the compliant contacts facing the PCB generate sufficient force to establish a connection with the PCB.

The compliant contacts of the interposer may transmit high speed signals, low speed signals, or power. Signal interference, such as crosstalk, may be caused by high-speed signals carried by electrical contacts that are in close proximity to each other. To reduce crosstalk, such compliant contacts may be dedicated to ground connections, between other compliant contacts intended for carrying high-speed signals. Optionally, shields may also be added between compliant contacts intended to carry high speed signals to reduce crosstalk. These approaches all tend to increase the size of the interposer, which is contrary to the miniaturization goals of many electronic systems.

Disclosure of Invention

Aspects of the present application relate to a small (or micro, miniaturized) high-speed interposer and a method of manufacturing the same.

Some embodiments relate to an interposer. The interposer may include an insulating housing comprising: a top surface and a bottom surface opposite the top surface; a plurality of first openings extending between the top surface and the bottom surface and arranged in a plurality of parallel rows; and a channel extending between the top and bottom surfaces and disposed between two rows of the first opening adjacent opposite sides of the channel, respectively; a plurality of electrical contacts each disposed within a corresponding one of the plurality of first openings, wherein each electrical contact includes a first contact portion extending above a top surface of the insulating housing; and a shield disposed in the channel, the shield including a plurality of first shield contacts extending from a first edge of the shield, wherein the plurality of first shield contacts extend through a top surface of the insulating housing.

Optionally, the at least one channel is partially enclosed on the top surface of the insulating housing such that the plurality of second openings are disposed on the top surface along an elongation direction of the at least one channel; and the shield contacts of the first plurality of shield contacts extend through corresponding openings of the second plurality of openings.

Optionally, a shield is disposed between and adjacent to a first set of electrical contacts and a second set of electrical contacts of the plurality of electrical contacts, whereby the shield reduces crosstalk between signals carried by the first set of electrical contacts and the second set of electrical contacts, the first set of electrical contacts being located in openings in a first of the plurality of parallel rows and the second set of electrical contacts being located in openings in a second of the plurality of parallel rows.

Optionally, the shield is a plate disposed in a first plane, and the first plane is perpendicular to the top and bottom surfaces of the insulating housing.

Optionally, the first and second sets of electrical contacts of the plurality of electrical contacts are configured to carry high speed signals.

Optionally, the shield extends in a first direction parallel to the plurality of parallel rows; the plurality of first shield contacts of the shield are aligned with corresponding contacts in the first set of electrical contacts and the second set of electrical contacts in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction.

Optionally, the center-to-center spacing between the first set of electrical contacts and the second set of electrical contacts in the second direction is between 0.9 millimeters and 1.1 millimeters.

Optionally, the first shield contact is spaced from the first set of electrical contacts and the second set of electrical contacts in the second direction between 0.4 millimeters and 0.6 millimeters center-to-center.

Optionally, the channel is a first channel and the shield is a first shield; the interposer further includes a plurality of shields including a first shield; the interposer further includes a plurality of channels including a first channel; one of the plurality of electrical contacts disposed in an opening in one of the plurality of parallel rows of openings is disposed between two of the plurality of shields adjacent opposite sides of the row of electrical contacts.

Optionally, for each of the first and second sets of electrical contacts, the first contact portion of the electrical contact extends a first distance above the top surface of the insulating housing when the electrical contact is in the uncompressed state; for each shield contact of the plurality of first shield contacts of the at least one shield, the contact portion of the shield contact extends a second distance above the top surface of the insulating housing when the shield contact is in the uncompressed state; and the second distance is shorter than the first distance.

Optionally, each of the first and second sets of electrical contacts is configured to be compressed at a spring rate (SPRING RATE) corresponding to a first stiffness (stiness); each of the plurality of first shield contacts includes a beam having a second stiffness; and the second stiffness is higher than the first stiffness.

Alternatively, the interposer described herein may be used in combination with a mating component that includes a planar surface with a plurality of contact areas formed thereon. The first contact portions of the first and second sets of electrical contacts and the contact portions of the plurality of first shield contacts are in electrical contact with corresponding contact areas formed on the planar surface of the mating component.

Optionally, the length of the beam of each of the first and second sets of electrical contacts is longer than the length of the beam of each of the plurality of first shield contacts of the shield.

Optionally, the beam of each of the plurality of first shield contacts is configured to deflect in a first plane.

Optionally, each of the first and second sets of electrical contacts are configured to deflect about an axis parallel to the top surface of the insulating housing.

Optionally, the plurality of first shield contacts are disposed in a first plane.

Optionally, the beam of each of the plurality of first shield contacts has an inner edge facing the first edge of the shield and an outer edge including a contact surface.

Optionally, the first edge of the shield includes a plurality of tooth-shaped portions (castellation), each facing an inner edge of a corresponding shield contact of the plurality of first shield contacts, and configured to limit deflection of the corresponding shield contact.

Optionally, a corresponding shield contact facing each of the plurality of tooth forms extends from the first edge of the shield to a distance from the tooth form such that the corresponding shield contact is pivotable about a point on the first edge from which the corresponding shield contact extends.

Optionally, each of the plurality of first shield contacts includes a beam configured to deflect at least partially in a first plane perpendicular to the top and bottom surfaces of the insulating housing. When a shield contact of the plurality of first shield contacts is in a compressed state, a portion of a beam of the shield contact is in contact with a body of the shield.

Optionally, the shield further comprises a plurality of second shield contacts extending from a second edge of the shield opposite the first edge; each of the plurality of second shield contacts is configured to deflect at least partially within the first plane; and a portion of the beam of the shield contact is in contact with the body of the shield when the shield contact of the plurality of second shield contacts is in a compressed state.

Optionally, a first shield contact of the plurality of first shield contacts and a second shield contact of the plurality of second shield contacts are disposed at respective locations on the first edge and the second edge, respectively.

Optionally, the first shield contact is in contact with a corner of the first edge when the first shield contact is in a compressed state, whereby the first shield contact is tapped (shuntedto) to the shield body.

Optionally, when the first shield contact is in a compressed state, the first shield contact taps to the shield body via a tap region (shunting area) located at a corner where a side of the shield body meets the first edge.

Optionally, for each of the plurality of first shield contacts, the beam comprises: a first portion extending from a first edge of the shield and disposed in a first plane; and a second portion extending from the first portion and having at least a portion curved away from the first plane.

Optionally, for each of the plurality of first shield contacts, the second portion of the beam comprises: a first portion extending from the first portion of the beam and disposed in a first plane; and an end portion extending from a first portion of the second portion of the beam at a non-zero angle relative to the first plane and configured to contact the first edge when the shield contact is in a compressed state.

Optionally, for each of the plurality of first shield contacts: the beam extends a distance from the first edge of the shield to provide a gap such that the beam does not contact the first edge when a shield contact of the plurality of first shield contacts is in a compressed state.

Optionally, the channel comprises an inner wall; the shield includes one or more tabs configured to press against an inner wall of the channel to retain the shield in the channel.

Optionally, one or more tabs protrude on the first side of the shield.

Optionally, each of the plurality of electrical contacts further comprises a second contact portion extending below the bottom surface of the insulating housing.

Optionally, the shield further comprises a plurality of second shield contacts extending from a second edge of the shield; the second edge being opposite the first edge of the shield; and a plurality of second shield contacts extend through the bottom surface of the insulative housing.

Optionally, the plurality of first shield contacts and the plurality of second shield contacts are stamped from a single piece of metal.

Optionally, each of the plurality of electrical contacts is C-shaped.

Optionally, each of the plurality of electrical contacts is configured such that the first and second ends of the C-shaped electrical contacts contact when the interposer is compressed by the pair of substrates to form a conductive path between the first and second contact portions of the electrical contacts through the first and second ends of the electrical contacts.

Optionally, the shield can be slidably mounted in the channel.

Optionally, the channel comprises an inner wall and the shield comprises one or more tabs that press against the inner wall of the channel such that the shield is retained in the channel.

Optionally, one or more tabs are each stamped out of the body of the shield.

Some embodiments relate to a method of manufacturing an interposer. The method may include inserting a plurality of electrical contacts into corresponding first openings extending between a top surface of the housing and a bottom surface opposite the top surface, wherein the first openings are arranged in a plurality of rows; stamping a shield from a metal plate, the shield including a plurality of shield contacts extending from a first edge of the shield; and inserting the shield into the channel of the housing such that the plurality of shield contacts extend through the top surface, wherein the channel is disposed between adjacent two rows of the first opening.

Optionally, the channel of the housing is partially closed at the top surface of the housing such that the plurality of second openings are provided on the top surface along the direction of elongation of the channel; and inserting the shield into the channel of the housing includes inserting the shield into the channel such that a plurality of shield contacts of the shield extend above the top surface through corresponding openings of the plurality of second openings.

Optionally, the method may further comprise retaining the shield in the channel.

Optionally, stamping the shield includes stamping one or more tabs in the shield; and retaining the at least one shield in the channel includes engaging the one or more tabs with a wall of the channel.

Optionally, stamping the shield includes stamping a blank from a metal sheet including the shield and a carrier strip, wherein the carrier strip is connected to the shield.

Optionally, the method may further comprise cutting the carrier strip from the shield after inserting the shield into the channel.

Optionally, the carrier strip is connected to a second edge of the shield opposite the first edge.

Optionally, stamping the shield further includes stamping additional shield contacts on the second edge of the shield.

Optionally, the shield is a first shield and the channel is a first channel; and the method may further include inserting a second shield into the second channel of the housing such that a plurality of shield contacts of the second shield extend through the top surface, wherein the second channel is disposed between adjacent two rows of the first opening.

Optionally, the method may further include bending a portion of each of the plurality of shield contacts away from a plane of the shield prior to inserting the shield into the passageway of the housing.

Some embodiments relate to an interposer. The interposer may include an insulating housing comprising: a top surface and a bottom surface opposite the top surface; a plurality of electrical contacts disposed at least partially within the insulating housing in at least two parallel rows; and a shield. Each electrical contact may include a first contact portion that extends above a top surface of the insulative housing. The shield may include: a body disposed at least partially within the insulating housing between adjacent two of the at least two parallel rows; and a plurality of first shield contacts connected to the body. The plurality of first shield contacts may extend through a top surface of the insulative housing; and the plurality of first shield contacts may be configured such that when the top surface of the interposer is compressed against the substrate, a shield contact of the plurality of first shield contacts the body of the shield.

Optionally, each of the plurality of shield contacts includes a beam including a first end coupled to and extending from the body, and a second end coupled to the first end and bent away from the body.

Optionally, for each of the plurality of shield contacts, the first end of the beam is coplanar with the body of the shield and the second end of the beam has a distal contact end that curves out of the plane of the body of the shield, wherein the distal contact end is configured for contacting the body of the shield.

Optionally, for each of the plurality of shield contacts: the beam includes an edge and a broad side wider than the edge; and the shield contact is configured for contacting the body of the shield via contact between the broad side of the distal contact end of the beam and the body of the shield.

Optionally, the shield includes an edge adjacent the top surface of the insulating housing; and for each of the plurality of shield contacts: the beam includes an edge and a broad side wider than the edge; and the shield contact is configured for contacting the body of the shield via contact between the broad side of the distal contact end of the beam and the edge of the shield.

These techniques may be used alone or in any combination. The above summary is provided by way of illustration only and is not intended to be limiting.

Drawings

The figures are not intended to be drawn to scale. In the drawings, each identical or nearly identical component that is illustrated in various figures may be represented by a like numeral. For purposes of brevity, not every component may be labeled in every drawing. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is an exploded view of an exemplary electronic assembly including an interposer disposed between two components, according to some embodiments;

FIG. 2A is a top perspective view of an exemplary interposer showing an array of electrical contacts and shield contacts located in corresponding openings in a surface of the interposer;

FIG. 2B is a bottom perspective view of the example interposer of FIG. 2A;

FIG. 2C is a side view of the example interposer of FIG. 2A, showing a plurality of electrical contacts and a plurality of shield contacts;

FIG. 3A is an enlarged view of portion A of the example interposer of FIG. 2A;

FIG. 3B is a perspective view of the housing of the interposer of FIG. 3A taken along line L-L of FIG. 3A;

FIG. 4 is a partially exploded view of the example interposer of FIG. 2A, showing a plurality of integrated shields and electrical contacts inserted into a housing of the interposer;

FIG. 5A is a perspective view of a shield of the interposer of FIG. 4;

FIG. 5B is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of a shield that may be used with an interposer having a lower stack height than the interposer of FIG. 2A;

fig. 6 is a perspective view of the shield of fig. 5A having a plurality of shield contacts stamped from a conductive sheet metal, the shield being attached to a carrier strip in a manufactured state;

FIG. 7A is a perspective view of an electrical contact of the interposer of FIG. 2A;

FIG. 7B is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of an electrical contact that may be used with an interposer having a lower stack height than the interposer of FIG. 2A;

FIG. 8A is a left side perspective view of an example of a shield that may be used with the interposer of FIG. 4, wherein a plurality of shield contacts are in an uncompressed state, according to another embodiment;

FIG. 8B is an end view of the shield of FIG. 8A;

FIG. 8C is a left side perspective view of the shield of FIG. 8A with a plurality of shield contacts in a compressed state;

FIG. 8D is an end view of the shield of FIG. 8C;

Fig. 8E is a left side top perspective enlarged view of a portion of the shield of fig. 8C with the shield contacts in a compressed state, showing the tap regions (shunt regions, shunting area) of the shield contacts;

FIG. 8F is a right side top perspective enlarged view of a portion of the shield of FIG. 8C with the shield contacts in a compressed state, showing the tapping area of the shield contacts;

FIG. 9 is a top plan view of the interposer of FIG. 2A;

FIG. 10A is a line drawing illustrating simulated near-end crosstalk at a contact under test (victim) in an exemplary interposer with a shield having non-tapping beams (non-shuntedbeam), where 17 active contacts surround the contact under test in a pattern where each other contact is grounded; and

Fig. 10B is a line drawing illustrating simulated near-end crosstalk in an exemplary interposer under the conditions of fig. 10A except that the shield has a tap beam (shuntedbeam).

Detailed Description

The inventors have recognized and appreciated techniques for implementing simple and reliable fabrication of small footprint intermediaries for operation with high speed signals. The interposer may have a shield that can be easily integrated into the interposer while occupying only a small area. In addition to the compact structure of the shield, the shield may also establish a reliable connection to ground to provide high shielding effectiveness. The techniques described herein may enable the interposer with closely spaced electrical contacts to be constructed to carry high-speed signals with cross-talk between the high-speed signals within acceptable levels.

The interposer may have a housing and a plurality of electrical contacts located in corresponding openings in the housing. The interposer may have one or more shields each having a body disposed between the electrical contacts along a vertical plane perpendicular to the top and bottom surfaces of the interposer housing. The plurality of electrical contacts in the interposer may be arranged in a plurality of rows (or lines, aplurality oflines) (e.g., rows (rows) or columns (columns)), and one or more shields may be disposed between two rows of electrical contacts adjacent opposite sides of the shield plate. The interposer housing may have one or more channels between the two rows of electrical contacts to receive one or more shields. The electrical contacts may carry high speed signals.

The shield may be formed by stamping a metal plate to provide a plate-like body. Further, each shield may include a plurality of shield contacts extending from an edge of the body. The shield contacts may be disposed in whole or in part in the same plane in which the shield is disposed. Such a shield may be thin, which can minimize the additional space required to provide the shield between two rows of electrical contacts. Thus, the techniques described herein do not require a large amount of space for the shield, thereby enabling an interposer with a small footprint. In some examples, the electrical contacts may be dual compression contacts, and the shield may have contacts extending from two opposite edges of the shield body such that the footprint of the interposer may be the same at the top and bottom interfaces.

The interposer described herein may have low crosstalk even at high frequencies, e.g., far-end crosstalk of less than 6% in the frequency range of 1GHz to 15GHz or in some examples in the higher frequency range. Crosstalk can be further reduced by some shielding designs. In some examples, the shield contact may be configured to contact the shield body when compressed. For example, the distal ends of the shield contacts may contact the shield body when compressed. Such contact may shunt shield contacts (shot), which have been found to further reduce crosstalk between signals passing through the interposer.

Furthermore, the shields described herein may facilitate matching the impedance of the signal path through the interposer to the impedance of the signal traces within the substrate to which the interposer is mated. For example, in some examples, the impedance within the interposer may be matched to a 50Ohm single ended trace or a 100Ohm differential trace or an 85Ohm differential trace.

Further, forming a shield having a body and contacts extending from one or more edges of the body may enable the intermediate member to be easily manufactured to have a desired height. This capability allows system designers to design PCBs or other substrates with which the interposer will mate and to individually select the spacing between these PCBs, as the interposer can be easily constructed to a desired height without the need to change the footprint of the interposer on the substrate.

The techniques described herein may also enable construction of intermediaries with a variety of contact and shield arrangements to accommodate a wide range of applications. For example, it is only necessary to provide the electrical contacts that carry high speed signals and are in close proximity to other electrical contacts that also carry high speed signals with a shield. In contrast, electrical contacts carrying low speed signals or power may not require shields. In some examples, the shield may be inserted into a channel in the interposer housing. The housing may be formed with channels between rows of openings that receive the electrical contacts. The shield may be placed in channels between some of the rows of electrical contacts, while channels are omitted between other rows of electrical contacts. In the example interposer described herein, the identically shaped electrical contacts may also be used for low speed signal and power connections.

Furthermore, the length of the shields may be made to match the length of the rows of contacts, or the shields may have different lengths, and one or more shields may be provided between the same two rows of electrical contacts for which shields are desired. The pitch of the plurality of shield contacts of the interposer may match the pitch of the plurality of electrical contacts such that the plurality of shield contacts may be arranged in alignment with the plurality of electrical contacts of the interposer. For example, the plurality of electrical contacts and the plurality of shield contacts of the interposer may be combined together and arranged in an array of columns and rows. Such a configuration may enable an interposer footprint on a PCB that provides an interface for mating with an interposer to have ground pads for coupling to shield contacts that are located between pads coupled to electrical contacts adjacent to both sides of the shield. This configuration can support high-speed signals through the mating interface without unacceptable degradation of signal integrity.

The techniques described herein may also enable simple fabrication of an interposer. The shield may be manufactured separately from the other components of the interposer, thus eliminating the need to change existing methods of manufacturing the electrical contacts. Each shield may also have shield contacts that are not connected to any of the electrical contacts of the interposer. Nevertheless, the interposer may still generate a suitable degree of contact force so that a reliable, secure connection may be made by the components pressing against the separable interface of the interposer. The electrical contacts may be dual compression contacts such that the interposer may have two separable interfaces on opposite sides of the interposer housing. Thus, the shield may also have shield contacts on opposite edges of the shield body, the shield contacts forming part of two separable interfaces on opposite sides of the interposer housing. Each of these shield contacts may have a beam with different structural and/or physical characteristics than the electrical contacts. For example, the height of beam deflection of each shield contact may be different than the height of beam deflection of the electrical contact. The beam of each shield contact may have a different length and stiffness (rigidity) than the beam of the electrical contact, wherein the structure and physical characteristics of the shield contact may be configured to achieve proper electrical contact with a mating component (e.g., a substrate such as a PCB) having a planar surface in combination with the plurality of electrical contacts. Nevertheless, as shown herein, the shield contacts may be designed to provide a contact force when the interposer is mated with the substrate such that they sufficiently match the contact force of the electrical contacts to reliably make signal and ground connections.

The interposer described herein may be formed in this way: the plurality of electrical contacts are inserted into corresponding openings of the housing arranged in a plurality of parallel rows, and the one or more shields are inserted into one or more channels of the housing. The shield may be disposed between two rows of openings for the electrical contacts. The channels may extend in a plane perpendicular to the top and bottom surfaces of the housing. The shield may be stamped from sheet metal such that the body of the shield and the plurality of shield contacts extending from opposite edges of the shield may be formed in the same stamping operation.

The channel may be fully open at the surface (e.g., bottom) of the housing. In this configuration, the shield may be slidably mounted into the channel through the surface of the housing toward the opposite surface (e.g., the top surface). The channels may be at least partially open at the opposite surfaces. For example, the channel may be partially closed at the top surface of the housing such that a plurality of openings pass through the top surface of the housing into the channel. The plurality of shield contacts may extend through the plurality of openings of the opposing surface of the housing when the shield is inserted into the passageway.

The shield may have one or more retention features to retain the shield within the passageway when the shield is inserted into the passageway. In some examples, the retention feature may engage an inner wall of the channel and retain the shield in the respective channel after the shield is inserted into the respective channel. In some examples, the retention feature may be one or more tabs cut from the shield body and bent to extend from a side of the shield body, or may include such tabs. In one non-limiting example, the one or more tabs are manufactured as part of a stamping during which the shield is formed from sheet metal. When the shield is inserted into the channel, one or more tabs may spring outwardly to engage a shelf or other engagement feature within the channel, or may press against an inner wall of the channel such that the shield is retained within the channel.

The carrier strip connected to the shield may also be formed during the same stamping operation. The carrier strip may be arranged in the same plane as the shield is arranged in. The carrier strip may be used in the manufacture of an interposer. For example, the carrier strip may be gripped, for example by an assembly tool, to align the shield with a corresponding channel in the interposer. The carrier strip may be used to insert the shield into the corresponding channel. Once the shields are inserted into the respective channels, the carrier strip may be severed and removed from the shields.

In some examples, the shield may be stamped from sheet metal, having a body and a shield contact. The shield contact may be stamped as a beam having a shape and length such that the distal end of the beam does not contact the body when compressed. In these examples, the beam may lie in the same plane as the shield body, corresponding to the plane of the metal plate. In other examples, the shape of the beam may be designed such that its distal tip contacts the shield body when compressed. In these examples, the distal ends of the beams forming the contacts may be bent out of the plane of the shield body, which may ensure reliable contact between the distal tips of the shield contacts and the shield body. In these other examples, the shunt (shunting) may further reduce crosstalk between signals passing through the interposer when the distal tip of the beam is in contact with the shield body.

Fig. 1 is an exploded view of an exemplary electronic assembly including an interposer disposed between two components, which in this example are illustrated as two printed circuit boards. Here, the electronic assembly 100 is shown with substrates 104 and 106, interposers 102 between the substrates, and semiconductor devices and other components attached to the substrates, with component 114 being one example. The substrates 104 and 106 may be part of corresponding electronic components, in this example implemented as subassemblies comprising other electronic components. For example, substrate 106 may be a motherboard and substrate 104 may be a daughter card (e.g., a processor card).

In the example of fig. 1, the electronic assembly 100 is shown having a sandwich or stacked configuration such that a plane on the substrate 106 at which the electrical interface to the interposer 102 is located is parallel to a plane on the substrate 104 at which the electrical interface to the interposer 102 is located. In the example of fig. 1, the substrate 104 includes pads 108 formed on a bottom surface 120 of the substrate 104, and the substrate 106 includes pads 110 formed on a top surface 122 of the substrate 106. In this example, the bottom surface of the substrate 104 is parallel to the top surface of the substrate 106. The pads of each of the substrates 104, 106 may be connected to a semiconductor chip such as an electronic component 114 or other component mounted on the substrate by traces or other conductive structures within the substrate.

In this example, the pads of the electrical interfaces on substrate 104 and substrate 106 have similar configurations, each substrate having an array of pads. The pads within each array may be closely spaced to achieve miniaturization of the electronic assembly 100. The interposer described herein enables pads to be closely spaced center-to-center at a distance in at least one dimension. For example, the pads may be arranged in an array having a plurality of parallel pad rows (lines). In this example, the pad array is a rectangular array.

During operation, bond pad 108 is in electrical contact with bond pad 110 via interposer 102. In this example, interposer 102 has dual compression electrical contacts 112, where the contact portion of each electrical contact makes contact with pads 108 on bottom surface 120 of substrate 104 and pads 110 on top surface 122 of substrate 106. A force pressing the contact portions against the respective pads is generated by mechanical components (not shown in fig. 1) of the electronic system 100 to press the substrate 104 and the substrate 106 together such that the interposer 102 is located between the substrate 104 and the substrate 106.

During operation, signals carried by one or more of the electrical contacts adjacent the shield may be high speed signals depending on the mode of operation controlled by components on the substrate (e.g., PCB) of the electronic assembly 100 and/or other electronic components (e.g., electronic component 114 in fig. 1). By the shield being arranged between the two electrical contacts, crosstalk between the two electrical contacts caused by high-speed signals carried by the two electrical contacts can be reduced. For example, in an exemplary operation, referring to fig. 3A, the electrical contacts 202-1, 202-2 are adjacent opposite sides of the shield 226-1. Thus, crosstalk caused by high speed signals in the electrical contacts 202-1, 202-2 may be reduced by the shield 226 disposed between the electrical contact 202-1 and the electrical contact 202-2.

In various modes of operation, the various electrical contacts may carry high speed signals or low speed signals, or a constant voltage (e.g., a power signal). In some examples, two electrical contacts adjacent to each other and spaced apart by a sufficient distance may be configured to carry a high speed signal and a low speed signal, respectively, without providing a shield between the electrical contacts. In one exemplary operation, the electrical contacts 202-3 and 202-4 are adjacent to each other along the elongate axis (e.g., direction 210), and these electrical contacts may also be configured to carry high speed signals and low speed signals, respectively, or both may carry low speed signals/power signals. In one exemplary operation, the electrical contacts 202-3 and 202-2 are adjacent in a direction perpendicular to the axis of elongation (e.g., direction 208), and these electrical contacts may be configured to carry high speed signals and low speed signals, respectively, or both may carry low speed signals/power signals.

The interposer 102 may include an insulating housing 130 having a top surface 116, a bottom surface 118 parallel to the top surface, and a plurality of openings 132 through the housing 130. The interposer 102 may also include a plurality of electrical contacts 112. The plurality of openings may be arranged in an array and may extend between the top surface 116 and the bottom surface 118 of the housing 130. In some embodiments, the housing may be an insulating member and the plurality of electrical contacts may be made of a conductive metal such as a copper alloy. For example, phosphor bronze may be used.

The interposer 102 may be mounted to a substrate, which in this example may be the substrate 106, by mechanical components (not shown). The mechanical component forces the contact portions of the electrical contacts against the pads 110 on the substrate 106. The contact portion may be compliant, such as a compliant beam at the bottom side 118 of the interposer 102. When the interposer 102 is pressed against the substrate 106, the beams may be deflected, creating spring-loaded contacts. A latch structure (not shown in fig. 1) may hold the interposer 102 in place on the substrate 106 to create a force that forms a spring-loaded contact. In addition, the substrate 104 may be pressed into the top surface 116 of the interposer 102. The interposer 102 or some other component of the electronic assembly 100 may include a latch structure (not shown in fig. 1) designed to hold the substrate 104 to the interposer and to press the substrate against the contact portions of the interposer contacts. These latching structures may be the same as or different from the latching structures that press the interposer 102 and substrate 106 together. In some embodiments, the upper contact portions of the contacts of the interposer 102 may be compliant and may apply a force to the pads 108 when the substrate 104 is pressed against the interposer. Similarly, lower contact portions of contacts of interposer 102 may be compliant and may apply a force to pads 110 when substrate 106 is pressed against the interposer.

Fig. 2A is a top perspective view of an exemplary interposer 102 showing an array of electrical contacts and shield contacts in corresponding openings in a surface of the interposer. Fig. 2B is a bottom perspective view of the example interposer of fig. 2A. In this example, the mating interface (interface) at the bottom of the interposer is similar to the mating interface (interface) at the top surface, with a plurality of parallel contact rows (multiple lines ofcontacts) extending through the bottom surface of the insulating housing. The contacts extending from the shield are seen to be located between the rows of electrical contacts, which shows that the shield may be positioned between adjacent rows of electrical contacts.

Fig. 2C is a side view of the interposer 102 of fig. 2A, showing a plurality of electrical contacts and a plurality of shield contacts extending through the upper and lower surfaces of the insulative housing 130.

Fig. 3A is an enlarged view of portion a of the example interposer of fig. 2A. Fig. 3B is a cutaway perspective view of the insulating housing 130 of the interposer of fig. 3A taken along line L-L of fig. 3A. As shown in fig. 3A, the interposer 102 may have a plurality of electrical contacts 202 disposed within corresponding ones of a plurality of openings 204 of the housing 130 of the interposer 102. As shown in fig. 3A, each electrical contact includes a first contact portion 206 that extends above a top surface 216 of the insulating housing 130. In this example, the contact is a dual compression contact and when compressed between two substrates, a contact force is generated against the two substrates. Thus, each contact may similarly extend through the bottom surface 218.

In the example of fig. 3A, the electrical contacts are arranged in a rectangular array such that the contact rows are aligned to form a plurality of parallel rows extending along a column direction (labeled herein as the y-direction). Each electrical contact has two beams (only the top beam is visible in fig. 3A) that both extend along an elongation axis labeled x. The extension axis x may be perpendicular to the column direction y. Thus, electrical contacts along the elongate axis x may be located in parallel rows 210-1, 210-2, etc.

As shown in fig. 2A and 2B, the plurality of openings 204 may extend between a top surface 216 and a bottom surface 218 of the housing 130. The elongate axes of the plurality of openings 204 are aligned along a first direction (e.g., the direction labeled x) and are arranged in a plurality of parallel rows, in this example, the elongate beams of each electrical contact 202 of the interposer 102 are also aligned along the x direction. The plurality of openings 204, or at least a subset thereof, may also be arranged in a plurality of rows, such as row 208, along a second direction, labeled herein as the y-direction. For example, the openings 204-1, 204-2, 204-3 are aligned along the y-direction.

The interposer 102 may have one or more shields 224, each shield 224 being disposed between electrical contacts on opposite sides of the shield. Each shield may have a plurality of shield contacts that extend through the top surface 216 and/or bottom surface 218 of the housing of the interposer. With further reference to fig. 3B, the housing 130 may additionally include a plurality of channels (e.g., channel 225-1, channel 225-2), each configured to receive a corresponding shield. As shown in fig. 3B, the channels 225-1, 225-2 may each extend between the top surface 216 and the bottom surface 218 of the insulating housing 220. In this example, the channels extend along a vertical plane (e.g., a plane parallel to the plane labeled x-z), where the vertical plane is perpendicular to the top surface 216 and the bottom surface 218 of the housing 220. In this example, each channel receives one shield. In this example, the channel 225-1 and the channel 225-2 are shown separated by a wall 228 between the channel 225-1 and the channel 225-2, wherein the wall 228 is an integral part of the housing 220 and may be formed, for example, as part of an operation of molding the housing.

In the illustrated configuration, a plurality of shields (e.g., shield 224) are disposed in a plurality of channels (e.g., channel 225-1, channel 225-2 in fig. 3B). Each shield 224 includes a body and a plurality of shield contacts 226 extending from an edge of the body of the shield. A plurality of shield contacts 226 may extend through the top surface 216 of the dielectric housing 130. In an interposer having separable mating interfaces at the top and bottom, one or more of the shields 224 can also include shield contacts 226 extending from a second edge of the body of the shield and through the bottom surface 218 of the insulating housing 130.

Each channel (e.g., channel 225-1, channel 225-2) may be disposed between adjacent rows of openings in the plurality of openings 204. For example, channel(s) 225-1 and/or 225-2 may be disposed between openings in rows 210-1 (see fig. 3A and 3B) and 210-2 (see fig. 3A), with openings along row 210-1 and openings along row 210-2 being disposed on opposite sides of channel(s) 225-1 and 225-2 and adjacent to channels 225-1 and 225-2, respectively.

With further reference to fig. 3B, the housing 220 may include additional channels disposed along additional vertical planes for receiving additional shields. Each such channel may be disposed between two adjacent electrical contacts (or groups of electrical contacts). Adjacent electrical contacts (or groups of electrical contacts) are disposed on opposite sides of the channel.

The channel 225-1 (and/or other channels, such as channel 225-2) of the housing 220 may be partially closed at the top surface 216 of the housing such that a plurality of openings 222 (where the openings 222-1 and 222-2 of the channel 225-1 have been numbered) are provided at the top surface. Each opening may have an elongation direction aligned with an elongation direction of the channel (e.g., direction 211). In some examples, direction 211 may be parallel to the direction of the plurality of rows 210. The plurality of openings (e.g., openings 222) of the channel are separated at the top surface 216 by corresponding portions of the housing (e.g., housing 226), wherein the plurality of openings 222 extending from the channel are connected below the top surface via the channel. The plurality of openings 222 are configured to receive corresponding shield contacts of the shield such that the shield contacts of the shield can extend above the top surface 216 of the housing 220.

The channel(s) 225 may be substantially or completely open at the bottom surface 218 of the interposer 102. This configuration enables the shield to be slidably mounted into the corresponding channel from the bottom surface of the housing toward the top surface of the housing. The shield may be inserted from the bottom surface 218 of the housing into a corresponding channel in the insulating housing 220, such as into the channel 225, in a direction I perpendicular to the top and bottom surfaces of the housing. Referring to fig. 3B, although the channel(s) are shown as being partially enclosed at the top surface of the interposer, alternatively the channel(s) 225 may be fully open at the top surface.

The spacing between the two electrical contacts may be small. Nevertheless, the shield may be disposed between two rows of electrical contacts. Fig. 3A and 3B are enlarged views of portions of the interposer 102. These views show that the shield 224 is disposed in a channel 225 between two electrical contacts (e.g., electrical contact 202-1, electrical contact 202-2, or groups of electrical contacts) that are adjacent to opposite sides of the shield, respectively. Thus, alternatively, some of pads 108 and/or pads 110 of the electrical component (see fig. 1) may be in contact with corresponding shield contacts to connect to the shield.

The electrical contacts may be closely spaced to enable a large number of connections to be made in a small area. In the illustrated example, the center-to-center spacing between adjacent electrical contacts in the same row may be 2 millimeters or less, such as between 1 millimeter and 1.8 millimeters or between 1.35 millimeters and 1.45 millimeters in some examples. The center-to-center spacing between electrical contacts in adjacent rows may be 2.5 millimeters or less, such as between 1.0 millimeters and 2.5 millimeters or 2 millimeters in some examples. The shield may be assembled between rows of electrical contacts having such a pitch such that the center-to-center pitch between the electrical contacts and the contacts of the shield may be 1.25 millimeters or less, such as between 0.5 millimeters and 1.25 millimeters or 1 millimeter in some examples. This configuration may form a rectangular array of electrical contact locations. Electrical contacts may be laid out at the intersection of each row and each column within the array. It is not required that electrical contacts be provided at every possible location in the array. If the lower density of electrical contacts is sufficient, the spacing may be non-uniform, or the electrical contacts may be arranged in an incomplete rectangular array such that there are electrical contacts at only a subset of the locations where the rows and columns intersect.

Fig. 4 is a partially exploded view of the example interposer 102, showing a plurality of shields 224 and electrical contacts 202 that may be inserted into the housing 130 of the interposer 102. In this example, each of the plurality of shields 224 has the same shape and is aligned along the same direction. In this example, each shield 224 is elongated in a direction corresponding to the elongated dimension of the interposer housing 130. Each shield lies in (or on) a plane parallel to the plane marked x-z. In this example, each of the plurality of electrical contacts 202 also has the same shape. The contacts 202 are arranged in parallel rows that are parallel to the shield. Each of the plurality of shields 224 may be inserted into a corresponding channel in the housing (e.g., channel 225-1 in fig. 3B). As such, when the shield is inserted into a corresponding channel (e.g., channel 225-1 in fig. 3B), the shield is disposed in (or on) a plane perpendicular to the top surface (e.g., top surface 216) and bottom surface (e.g., bottom surface 218) of the insulating housing 220. As shown in fig. 4, each of the plurality of shields 224 may include a plurality of shield contacts 226 extending from one edge or opposite edges of the shield.

Fig. 5A is an enlarged view of the shield 224. The shield 224 may include a shield body 512. The shield body may be a plate. The shield may further include a plurality of shield contacts 226 extending from the body 512 of the shield, such as at an edge of the shield 516A. In this example, each shield contact 226 includes a beam 522A, the beam 522A including an inner edge 524A and an outer edge 526A. For contacts extending from edge 516A, the inner edge of the shield contact faces the edge 516A of the shield. The outer edge of the shield contact includes a contact surface 528A.

The shield contacts 226 may be disposed in the same plane (e.g., the x-z plane) in which the shield is disposed. The shield contact 226 may be formed as part of the same stamping operation in which the shield body 512 is stamped from sheet metal.

The shield 224 may additionally include a plurality of additional shield contacts 226 extending from the body 512 of the shield at opposite edges (e.g., edge 516B). In this example, the shield contacts extending from edge 516B are configured similar to the contacts extending from edge 516A. For example, for a contact extending from edge 516B, an inner edge of the shield contact faces edge 516B of the shield, and an outer edge of the shield contact includes a contact surface.

In this example, the height Z1 of the shield body 512 is approximately the same as the height of the housing 130. When the shield is inserted into a corresponding channel in the housing (e.g., as depicted in fig. 3B), the plurality of shield contacts of the shield may extend above the top surface of the housing and/or below the bottom surface (see shield contacts 226A, 226B in fig. 2C). Thus, the shield 224 may provide dual compression contacts to engage separable interfaces on the top and bottom of the housing.

The beam of the shield (e.g., beam 522A) may be in the same plane as the body of the shield is disposed therein. When the shields are inserted into the corresponding channels (e.g., channels 225 in fig. 3B), the shields are disposed in a vertical plane, such as the x-z plane. Thus, beam 522A deflects in the z-direction in the vertical plane.

The edge of the shield body (e.g., edge 516A) may include a plurality of tooth (or castellations, castellation) 525A, each of the plurality of tooth 525A facing the inner edge 524A of the corresponding shield contact 514A. As shown in fig. 5A, each shield contact extends from an edge of the shield body (e.g., edge 516A) to be a distance (e.g., distance d) from a corresponding tooth that the shield contact faces. The gap d between the shield contact and the side of the corresponding tooth enables the shield contact to pivot about the point (e.g., point P) on edge 516A from which the shield contact extends. The purpose of the tooth is to limit the deflection of the corresponding shield contact, e.g. the movement in the negative z-direction, so that the beam of the shield contact is prevented from being overstressed (overstress ).

In the illustrated embodiment, the shield contacts extending from edge 516B are configured the same as the shield contacts extending from edge 516A, and edge 516B may similarly have a tooth shaped portion that is positioned to function in the same manner to prevent overstress of contacts 226 extending from edge 516B.

With further reference to fig. 5A, the shield 224 may have one or more retention features, shown here as tabs 520. The retention feature may be configured to enable the shield 224 to be slid into and retained within the corresponding channel. For example, the retention feature may be provided by one or more tabs 520 protruding from a major surface of the shield body 512. When the shield is slid into the corresponding channel, the one or more tabs engage the channel such that the shield is retained in the channel. The tab may frictionally engage the channel, such as by pressing against an inner wall of the channel. Alternatively or additionally, the tabs may engage the channel by snapping onto a shelf or other feature within the channel. Alternatively, the tab may engage the channel by piercing into the wall of the channel. This feature may work asymmetrically so that the shield may be inserted without the tab engaging the wall of the channel, and if the shield is retracted, the tab will penetrate into the wall of the channel.

As shown in fig. 5A, the retention feature may be formed directly from the shield body 512 by stamping out the tab and pressing the tab in a direction perpendicular to the plane in which the shield body 512 is disposed. In this example, the tabs are square, but the shape of the retention features may be different. For example, the tabs may be circular, rectangular, semi-circular, or any other suitable shape. Regardless of shape, each tab may include a joining end joining the tab and the shield body, and a free end that is severed (or separated) from the shield body.

The joined ends of the tabs may be closer to the edge 516A than the free ends when the shield is inserted such that the first edge 516A of the shield is inserted into the corresponding channel. In one non-limiting example, the tab 520 has an end 532 joining the tab and the shield body, while all other sides of the tab are severed from the shield body. The end 532 is a joined end that is parallel to the edge 516A and/or edge 516B of the shield body. The link end 532 is spaced from the edge 516A distance (D1) that is shorter than the free end 534 is spaced from the edge 516A distance (D2). This configuration enables the shield to be smoothly slid into the channel with the tab's attachment end 532 first entering the channel.

The channel 225 may be partially closed on the top surface of the housing such that an edge of the shield (e.g., edge 514A in fig. 5A) may be pushed toward the top surface until it contacts one or more portions of the housing (e.g., housing rib 227-1, housing rib 227-2 … …) that separate the openings 222 (e.g., opening 222-1, opening 222-2) at the top surface. The partially enclosed channel may prevent the shield from exiting the top surface of the housing. In some embodiments, the housing ribs 227 (e.g., housing rib 227-1, housing rib 227-2, housing rib 227-3 … …) may be configured to control the depth of insertion of the shield into the housing. The retention feature depicted in fig. 5A may limit the shield from being withdrawn through the lower surface of the housing. Even if the channel(s) (e.g., channel 225-1, channel 225-2 in fig. 3B) are fully open at the upper surface of the housing, the retention feature may provide sufficient engagement between the shield and the interposer housing so that the shield cannot easily come out.

In some examples, the shield need not be rigidly locked in place in a vertical direction perpendicular to the top and bottom surfaces of the housing, although the shield is retained in the respective channel. The shield may be allowed to move in the vertical direction. This configuration may enable the shield to float within the channel to balance forces at the top mating interface and the bottom mating interface.

Fig. 5B is a variation of a shield that may be used with an interposer having a lower stack height than interposer 102. As shown, the shield 550 may be similar to the shield 224 (fig. 5A) except that the height Z2 of the shield body is less than the height Z1 of the shield body 512. Accordingly, the shield 550 may be inserted into the channel of the dielectric housing of the interposer in a similar manner, wherein the dielectric housing of the interposer is shaped as described above for the housing 130, except that the upper and lower surfaces may be spaced apart by a distance Z2.

Regardless of the size of the shield, fig. 6 illustrates a step in the manufacturing process that may facilitate insertion of the shield into the channel of the dielectric housing of the interposer. The manufacturing process is shown with respect to shield 224, but the same techniques may be applied to shields of different configurations, such as shield 550. Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a shield having a plurality of shield contacts 226 stamped out of a conductive sheet metal, the shield 224 being attached to a carrier strip 620 in a manufactured state. The carrier strip 620 may be used to fabricate an interposer. In some embodiments, the stamping operation on a continuous metal strip may produce a series of blanks configured as shields 224 connected by carrier strip 620. The carrier strip 620 is connected to the edge 516B of the shield by one or more extensions 622. In this example, the extension 622 is bent such that the shield 224 and the carrier strip 620 lie in different parallel planes.

The features of the shields described herein may be simply formed in the same stamping operation. For example, the plurality of shield contacts may be formed by stamping. As shown in fig. 6, the shield 224 may be stamped to include a shield body 512 and a plurality of shield contacts 226 extending from opposite edges 516A, 516B of the shield. After the stamping operation, the shield body and the plurality of shield contacts may be disposed in the same plane, such as in the x-z plane.

One or more retention features for the shield described herein may also be formed as part of the stamping operation.

During manufacture of the interposer, the carrier strips may be grasped to align the shields 224 with corresponding channels in the interposer housing. The carrier strip 620 may be used to insert (e.g., push hard) the shield 224 into the corresponding channel. Once the shields 224 are inserted into the respective channels, the carrier strip may be severed and removed from the shields.

Severing the carrier strip 620 from the shield 602 may be performed using any suitable tool or freehand. For example, a force may be applied to one or more of the extensions 622 in a lateral direction perpendicular to the plane in which the shield is disposed. This may prevent the extension 622 from remaining in the same plane, thereby severing the extension 622 and carrier strip from the shield.

Although the embodiments are described in terms of a single shield and channel, it should be appreciated that the manufacturing process may be repeated for multiple shields and channels in a similar manner as described with reference to fig. 1-6.

As described above, an interposer configured by inserting contacts into openings of a housing and inserting shields into channels of the housing can be manufactured to have different stack heights by using shields having bodies of different heights. The electrical contacts may also have different heights. Fig. 7A is an enlarged view of the electrical contacts of interposer 102. Fig. 7B is a variation of an electrical contact as may be used with a shorter stack height interposer, which may be implemented with a shield 550 (fig. 5B), for example. As shown in fig. 7A and 7B, the electrical contacts may be C-shaped and may be self-routing (self-shunting, slef-shunting). The electrical contacts 202 and 750 also each have a shunt function such that the first and second ends of the C-shaped electrical contacts are configured to be electrically connected when the electrical contacts are compressed between a pair of substrates to form a second conductive path between the first and second contact portions of the electrical contacts through the first and second ends of the electrical contacts.

In the illustrated example, each of the electrical contacts 202 and 750 are symmetrical, having contact portions 714 or 754 at the top and bottom of the contact, respectively. The contact portions are located at the ends of beams 712 and 752, respectively, and beams 712 and 752 are joined by backbones 710 and 750, respectively. The contact portions 714 and 754 press against conductive structures (e.g., pads on a surface of a PCB) on a pair of substrates. These conductive structures are connected by either backbone 710 or backbone 750.

In addition, each of the electrical contacts 202 and 750 has a tip portion 716 and 756, the tip portion 716 and 756 extending beyond the contact portion 714 or 754, respectively. These header portions may help retain the electrical contacts in openings in the interposer housing. When the electrical contact 202 or 750 is compressed, the tip portion may contact other structures to form a second conductive path through the electrical contact. Thus, the top and bottom end portions 716 or 756 are shorted, which can improve the operation of the interposer, particularly for high frequency signals.

In the case of electrical contacts 750, the distal ends 758 of the top and bottom end portions 756 contact each other, shorting the end portions 756 together directly. In the case of the electrical contact 202, the higher contact may be achieved by providing a longer backbone 710 and an intermediate portion 722, wherein the intermediate portion 722 has upper and lower pads 720 that are bent relative to the intermediate portion 722. When the electrical contact 202 is compressed, the tip portion 718 contacts the pad 720, shorting the tip portion 718 through the intermediate portion 722.

Further details of C-shaped electrical contacts are described in U.S. patent No. 9,425,525 and U.S. patent application publication No. 20230140379, entitled "TALL HEIGHT Interposer," filed on 10 months 24 of 2022, U.S. patent application publication No. 9,425,525, showing contacts such as contact 750, and U.S. patent application publication No. 20230140379, showing contacts such as contact 202, the entire contents of both of which are incorporated herein by reference. In addition to self-shunting (self-shunting), these prior publications describe retaining dual compression contacts in an interposer housing.

The electrical contacts 202 and 750 may be configured to have similar mating characteristics despite having different heights. For example, beams 712 and 752 may have the same length L2 and/or other mechanical characteristics such that they provide the same contact force when compressed to the same extent. For example, the contact force may be in the range of 5 newtons to 60 newtons when the beam deflects 0.05 millimeters to 0.2 millimeters due to compression of the interposer between the pair of substrates.

In some examples, the contact force of the electrical contacts may be equal (balanced) to the compressive force provided by the shield contacts 226. For example, the contact force may be in the range of +/-10% or +/-20%. Since the shape of the beam of the contact 202 or the contact 750 is different from the shape of the beam of the shield contact 226, the length of the beam may be different to provide a mating contact force. Alternatively or additionally, the beams of the shield contacts may be designed to deflect less in the Z-direction than the beams of the electrical contacts.

For example, referring to fig. 2C, for an electrical contact such as electrical contact 202 or electrical contact 750, when the electrical contact is in an uncompressed state, the first contact portion 714 or 754 of the electrical contact may extend a first distance h1 above the top surface 216 of the insulating housing. For shield contacts of a shield such as the shield depicted in fig. 5A-5B, the contact portion of the shield contact may extend a second distance h2 above the top surface 216 of the insulating housing when the shield contact is in an uncompressed state, wherein the second distance h2 is shorter than the first distance h1.

This configuration may accommodate a more rigid one of the shield contacts than either beam 712 or beam 752, which is caused by stamping the shield contact from sheet metal. Although the beams are more rigid, when the interposer is mated with a pair of substrates, h1 is shorter than h2 such that the deflection of the shield contact beams is less than the deflection of beams 712 or 752. Alternatively or additionally, the beam stiffness of the shield contact 226 may also be reduced by making the beam length L1 (see fig. 5A) longer than L2. Alternatively or additionally, other techniques may also be used to match the contact forces of the shield contacts and the electrical contacts. For example, the shield may be made of a different metal than the electrical contacts and/or be made with a different thickness.

In the illustrated embodiment, the electrical contacts 202 and/or 750 are symmetrical such that the beams at the top interface may be identical to the beams at the bottom interface. Similarly, shields 224 and/or 550 have the same configuration at their upper and lower edges. Thus, as described above, features integrated in the top interface may also be integrated in the structure at the bottom interface. For example, the electrical contacts may also extend a first distance h1 below the bottom surface 218 of the insulative housing when the electrical contacts are in an uncompressed state, and the shield contacts may extend a second distance h2 below the bottom surface of the insulative housing when the shield contacts are in an uncompressed state.

Although the electrical contacts and the shield contacts are at different distances from the top/bottom surfaces of the housing when they are in an uncompressed state, the electrical contacts and the shield contacts may accommodate flat surfaces of mating components (e.g., the substrates 104, 106 in fig. 1). For example, the mating components may be substrates 104, 106 (e.g., PCBs) that each include a planar surface on which a plurality of contact areas (e.g., pads) are formed. The contact portions (e.g., top portions) of the electrical contacts and the contact portions of the shield contacts may be in electrical contact with corresponding contact areas formed on a planar surface of the mating component that is located on top of the interposer. Similarly, the contact portions (e.g., bottom portions) of the electrical contacts and the contact portions of the shield contacts may be in electrical contact with corresponding contact areas formed on a planar surface of the mating component at the bottom of the interposer.

The inventors have recognized and appreciated that simply forming the shield to fit compactly between rows of electrical contacts may result in a sufficiently large difference in the physical properties of the shield contacts from the physical properties of the electrical contacts to interfere with the performance of the interposer under some operating conditions. The design parameters described herein may be selected to provide a shield contact and an electrical contact that reliably mate with one or more substrates having planar surfaces.

The inventors have further recognized and appreciated the design of shield contacts that may further reduce crosstalk within an interposer. Such contacts may be configured to be self-routing (self-shunting). For example, the self-diverting shield contact may be a beam with its distal end bent back toward the shield body such that when the contact is compressed, the distal end contacts the shield body. In this compressed shape, the beam is coupled to the shield body at both ends such that the contact point is near a central portion of the beam. While not wishing to be bound by any particular theory of operation, theoretically tapping the distal end of the contact (shunt, shunting) reduces radiation associated with the current in the contact. This current may be caused by a signal passing near the shield (induce). Radiation caused by such currents may couple to contacts carrying other signals, resulting in crosstalk.

One example of such a shield contact design is shown in fig. 8A-8F, with fig. 8A-8F showing a shield 800 that may be used with the interposer 102 (fig. 1). Fig. 8A is a left side perspective view of an example of a shield 800 that can be used with the interposer of fig. 4, with a plurality of shield contacts 826 in an uncompressed state. Fig. 8B is an end view of the shield of fig. 8A. Fig. 8C is a left side perspective view of the shield 800 of fig. 8A with the plurality of shield contacts 826 in a compressed state. Fig. 8D is an end view of the shield of fig. 8C. Fig. 8E is a left side top perspective enlarged view of a portion of the shield 800 of fig. 8C with the shield contact 826 in a compressed state, showing the tapping region of the shield contact. Fig. 8F is a right side top perspective enlarged view of a portion of the shield 800 of fig. 8C with the shield contact 826 in a compressed state, showing the tapping region of the shield contact.

As shown in fig. 8A-8F, the configuration of the shield 800 may be similar to the configuration of the shield 224 (fig. 5A) and/or the shield 550 (fig. 5B) except that the shield contacts 826 each include a beam (e.g., beam 822) with a distal end (e.g., distal end 822B) configured to contact the shield body 812 when the shield contacts 826 are in a compressed state (fig. 8E and 8F). This configuration enables the shield contact to be connected to ground (be shunted to ground) when the shield contact is compressed.

Similar to the shields 224, 550, the shield 800 may also be inserted into a channel of an insulating housing of an interposer as described above for the housing 130. Details of the configuration of the shield 800 will be further described with respect to fig. 8A through 8F.

With further reference to fig. 8A-8F, the beam 822 can include an arm (e.g., arm 822A in fig. 8E) extending from the edge 816A of the shield body 812 and a distal end 822B extending from the arm 822A. As the beam 822 deflects, the arm 822A (fig. 8E) moves up and down within a plane (e.g., plane PP in fig. 8B and 8D) in which the shield body 812 is disposed. In the illustrated example, the arm 822A has two sections, one section 822A-1 extending generally upward from the edge of the shield body, and a second section 822A-2 extending generally parallel to the edge of the shield body.

The distal portion 822B of the beam 822 may have at least a section that is bent away from the plane PP (e.g., bent at an angle a) and configured to contact the shield body 812 when the shield contact 826 is in a compressed state.

Referring to fig. 8B and 8D, distal end 822B may include a first portion 822B-1 and a second portion 822B-2 extending from first portion 822B-1. The first portion 822B-1 may be disposed in the same plane (e.g., plane PP) in which the shield body 812 is disposed. As such, the beam 822 deflects at least partially in the Z-direction (see fig. 8B) within the plane PP as the shield contact 826 moves from the uncompressed state to the compressed state. For example, portion 822B-1 may deflect in plane PP. When the shield contact 826 is fully in a compressed state, the portion 822B-2 of the shield contact 826 may contact the corner 816A-1 of an edge of the shield (e.g., edge 816A in fig. 8E, 8F) such that the shield contact 826 is tapped to the shield body. As shown in fig. 8E and 8F, the shield contact 826 may be tapped to the shield body via a tap region 870 (as shown in fig. 8F, as defined by the intersection between the broad side (e.g., broad side 832) of the portion 822B-2 of the shield contact 826 and the corner 816A-1 of the edge (e.g., edge 816A) of the shield body 812.

Referring to fig. 8A and 8E, a gap 802 may exist between beams 822 of shield contact 826 and edge 816A of shield body 812. As a result, beam Liang Beibu a of shield contact 826 may not contact edge 816A when shield contact 826 is deflected to a compressed state (see fig. 8E). The gap 802 may be implemented in a variety of configurations. For example, unlike shields 224, 550, edge 816A of shield 800 may have no tooth (see fig. 8A).

In a similar configuration to shield 224 (fig. 5A), shield 550 (fig. 5B), shield 800 may include two opposing edges, e.g., edge 816A, 816B, each having a plurality of shield contacts extending therefrom. For example, the shield contact 826 may extend from the first edge 816A or the second edge 816B and may have a structure similar to that described above. In some embodiments, a first one of the shield contacts 826 (e.g., shield contact 826-1) and a second one of the shield contacts (e.g., shield contact 826-2 (see fig. 8A)) may extend from opposite edges (e.g., edges 816A, 816B) of the shield body, respectively. The shield contacts may be aligned at respective locations (e.g., top and bottom) on opposite edges. In other variations, the positions of the first shield contact and the second shield contact may not be aligned.

Similar to the shields 224 (fig. 5A), 550 (fig. 5B), the shield 800 may include one or more retention features to retain the shield in the insulating housing. In this example, the retention feature is a tab (e.g., tab 820 in fig. 8A) that is configured to press against an inner wall of the channel of the interposer to retain the shield in the channel. As shown in fig. 8A, one or more tabs 820 may protrude at a side of the shield (e.g., side 812 in fig. 8D).

Although shield 800 is described in contrast to shield 224 (fig. 5A), shield 550 (fig. 5B), shield 800 may be configured for use with an interposer such as interposer 102 (e.g., shown in fig. 1-4) regardless of the configuration of shield 224 and shield 550. Referring to fig. 1-4, in some embodiments, the interposer 102 can include an insulating housing (e.g., insulating housing 130 in fig. 3A) that includes a top surface (e.g., top surface 216) and a bottom surface (e.g., bottom surface 218) opposite the top surface. The interposer 102 may include a plurality of electrical contacts (e.g., electrical contacts 202) disposed in at least two parallel rows (e.g., rows 210-1, 210-2) at least partially within the insulative housing 130. Each electrical contact (e.g., electrical contact 202) may include a first contact portion (e.g., 206) that extends above a top surface (e.g., top surface 216) of the insulating housing.

With further reference to fig. 3A and 8A-8F, the interposer 102 can also include a shield, such as shield 800, that includes a body (e.g., body 812 in fig. 8A) disposed at least partially within the insulating housing between adjacent two parallel rows (e.g., row 210-1, row 210-2) of the at least two parallel rows. The shield 800 may include a plurality of first shield contacts (e.g., contacts 826) coupled to the body, wherein the plurality of first shield contacts 826 extend through the top surface 216 (fig. 3A) of the insulating housing 130. These electrical contacts (e.g., electrical contact 826) of the shield may be configured such that when the top surface 216 of the interposer 102 is compressed against the substrate, the shield contact 826 of the plurality of first shield contacts is in contact with the body (e.g., body 812) of the shield, and is thereby tapped.

In some embodiments, each of the plurality of shield contacts (e.g., contact 826) may be a beam 822 (fig. 8A, 8E), or may include a beam 822 (fig. 8A, 8E). The beam 822 may include a first end (e.g., end 822A) coupled to the body (body 812) and extending from the body (body 812) and a second end (end 822B) coupled to the first end (end 822A) and bent toward the body 812. In this example, referring to fig. 8E, the first end 822A has a first section 822A-1 extending from an edge of the body 812, and a second section 822A-2 extending from the first section, the second portion Duan Wanqu being generally parallel to the edge of the body 812. The second section 822A-2 may include contact locations 830 that are designed to press against a ground pad or other conductive structure of a substrate to be mated with an interposer.

As shown in fig. 8B and 8D, the second end (end 822B) may be a distal end having a distal contact end (e.g., distal contact end 822B-2) that is bent away from the body 812 at a non-zero angle a relative to the plane of the body. As further shown in fig. 8B and 8D, for each of the plurality of shield contacts (e.g., contact 826), a first end of the beam (e.g., end 822A in fig. 8E) is coplanar with the body 812 of the shield 800 in the plane PP. The second end of the beam (e.g., end 822B in fig. 8F) may have a distal contact end (e.g., distal contact end 822B-1) that curves out of the plane (plane PP) of the body of the shield, wherein the distal contact end may be configured to contact a corner 816A-1 of the edge 816A of the shield when the shield contact 826 is in a compressed state.

With further reference to fig. 8E and 8F, in some embodiments, for each of the plurality of shield contacts, the beam (e.g., beam 822) may include an edge (e.g., edge 823) having a width (e.g., width w 1) and a broadside (e.g., broadside 832) having a width (e.g., width w 2). The width of the wide side (width w 2) may be greater than the width of the edge (width w 1). In this configuration, the shield contact is configured to contact the body of the shield (body 812) via contact (region 870) between the broad side of the distal contact end of the beam (beam 832) and the body of the shield (body 812). In some embodiments, the shield 800 may have an edge (e.g., top edge 816A).

When the shield 800 is installed in an interposer (e.g., the interposer 102 in fig. 1-4), the top edge 816A may be adjacent to a top surface (e.g., the top surface 216) of an insulating housing (e.g., the insulating housing 130) of the interposer. In this configuration, the shield contact is configured to contact the body of the shield (body 812) via contact (e.g., at region 870) between the wide side of the distal contact end of the beam (beam 832) and the corner of the edge (e.g., edge 816A) of the shield body 812. The opening of the channel may be sufficiently wide over part or all of its length to facilitate contact between the distal end of the shield contact and a portion of the shield.

The manufacturing and installation process for the shields 224, 550 as described herein may also be used to manufacture and install the shield 800 as shown in fig. 8A-8F. For example, the shield body 812 and the shield contact 826 may be stamped from the same sheet of metal in a manner similar to that described with respect to the shields 224, 550. In some embodiments, a portion of the shield contact (e.g., distal end 822B) may be bent away from the plane of the shield before the shield is inserted into the channel of the housing. Additionally and/or alternatively, the shield contact 826 may have characteristics that enable reliable operation of the interposer.

Fig. 9 is a plan view of an interposer manufactured according to one or more of the techniques described herein, labeled with exemplary dimensions, according to some embodiments. The interposer disclosed in the various embodiments herein (e.g., fig. 1-8F) allows for tight spacing between groups of electrical contacts that may be used to carry high-speed signals, including single-ended signals and/or differential signals. For example, two electrical contacts with a shield therebetween may be spaced apart by 1.0 millimeters or about 1.0 millimeters, such as 0.8 millimeters, 0.9 millimeters, 1.0 millimeters, 1.1 millimeters, or 1.2 millimeters. Similarly, a plurality of shields may be disposed between rows of electrical contacts, wherein two shields with one or more electrical contacts disposed therebetween are disposed in parallel and may be spaced apart by 1.0 millimeters or about 1.0 millimeters.

The various embodiments of fig. 1-9 may reduce cross-talk between electrical signals in a plurality of electrical contacts in an interposer. With the shunt features described in connection with fig. 8A-8F, crosstalk can be further reduced. For example, fig. 10A is a line drawing illustrating simulated near-end crosstalk at a contact under test (victim) in an exemplary interposer where the shield has non-tapping beams (non-shuntedbeam), where 17 active contacts surround the contact under test in a pattern where each other contact is grounded. Fig. 10B is a line drawing illustrating simulated near-end crosstalk in an exemplary interposer under the conditions of fig. 10A except that the shield has a tap beam (shuntedbeam). By comparing fig. 10B with fig. 10A at a frequency of 10GHz, it can be seen that peak crosstalk is reduced from-37.4 dB (fig. 10A) to-48.3 dB (fig. 10B), resulting in an improvement of about 11dB. For example, shields with tapped beams at frequencies up to 15GHz and beyond 15GHz (up to 30GHz and beyond 30GHz in this example) result in multi-active crosstalk below-40 dB, which expands the operating frequency range of the interposer.

Having thus described a number of embodiments, it is to be appreciated various alterations, modifications, and improvements will readily occur to those skilled in the art. Such alterations, modifications, and improvements are intended to be within the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the foregoing description and drawings are by way of example only. Various modifications may be made to the exemplary structures shown and described herein.

For example, the interposer housing illustrated has a plurality of channels, each sized to receive one shield. Alternatively, the channel may be long enough to receive multiple shields.

As another example, an interposer configured for single ended signals is shown. In this configuration, the contacts for the high speed signals are arranged in rows such that the shields are positioned between the rows of high speed signals to form an alternating pattern of rows of high speed electrical contacts, shields, and the like. Alternatively, the interposer may be configured to pass high-speed signals configured as differential signals. In this example, two adjacent contacts in the same row (line) may be connected to one carry differential signals. In examples where two electrical contacts in adjacent rows are connected to carry one differential signal, the rows of electrical contacts and the shield may be arranged in a pattern that includes two rows of high speed electrical contacts, a shield, and the like.

As yet another example, an electrical contact and shield are shown. In use, the shield may be connected to an Alternating Current (AC) ground, which may be earth ground (earth ground), or other low frequency references, including a power supply, depending on the system design. The electrical contacts may be used to establish other connections, such as for high speed signals, low speed signals, power connections, and/or ac ground.

As yet another example, parallel rows of contacts are shown with the contacts in each row aligned along a direction perpendicular to the row. Alternatively, the contacts may be positioned in other arrangements. For example, the contact rows may be staggered in the row direction such that each contact row is offset relative to an adjacent contact row.

As yet another example, an embodiment is shown in which the shield is described as extending parallel to the rows of electrical contacts. The rows extend in an elongated dimension of the interposer. Alternatively, the shield may be positioned in a channel that extends transverse to the elongated dimension of the interposer.

Furthermore, an embodiment is shown in which all the shields in the interposer have the same dimensions and are arranged in parallel. Alternatively, different sized shields may be included in the interposer, and/or the shields of the interposer may have different orientations. For example, some shields may be perpendicular to other shields.

Similarly, all contacts within the interposer are shown to have the same shape and the same orientation within the interposer housing. Alternatively, differently shaped contacts may be included in the interposer. For example, the contacts for power connections may be wider than the contacts for high speed signals.

As another example, shield retention is described as being based on engagement of a retention feature on the shield with the interposer housing. Alternatively, the retention feature may alternatively or additionally be formed in the interposer housing. For example, a heat set (HEAT STACKING) may be used to form a protrusion from the insulating housing to block the opening of the channel after the shield is inserted, thereby capturing the shield within the channel.

As a further example, a dual compression interposer is used as an example of an interposer that integrates the features described herein. Alternatively, a single sided interposer may be constructed using the techniques described herein. In such an interposer, the electrical contacts and the shield contacts may have structures as described herein at the separable interfaces. At the opposite end, the electrical contacts and/or shields may be configured for attachment to a PCB. Instead of having compliant beams as described herein, the electrical contacts and/or shields may have tail portions configured for attachment to the PCB at the opposite end. For example, the tail may be configured for BGA attachment, gull wing (gull wing) soldering, via solder, plated-through-hole soldering, or press-fit attachment to a PCB, or the like.

As yet another example, a self-diverting shield contact is described as having a distal end that contacts the shield body when the contact is compressed. In other examples, the shield may have a protrusion protruding from an edge aligned with the distal end such that the distal end is in contact with the protrusion protruding from the body, rather than directly in contact with the body.

Furthermore, the self-shunting shield contact is described as contacting a corner of an edge of the shield body. Theoretically, this configuration provides reliable and repeatable contact. The distal end may establish contact by other means, for example by pressing against an edge or by pressing against the broad side of the shield body.

As another example of a variation, the distal end of the illustrated shield contact includes two portions, one in a plane and the other bent out of the plane of the shield body. In other examples, only one such portion may be included.

The various aspects of the invention may be used alone, in combination, or in a variety of configurations that are not specifically discussed in the embodiments described in the foregoing and are therefore not limited in their application to the details and arrangement of components set forth in the foregoing description or illustrated in the drawings. For example, aspects described in one embodiment may be combined in any manner with aspects described in other embodiments.

Furthermore, while advantages of the invention are noted, it should be understood that not every embodiment of the invention will include every advantage described. Some embodiments may not implement any features described herein and in some cases as advantageous. Accordingly, the foregoing description and drawings are by way of example only.

Additionally, the invention may be embodied as a method, examples of which are provided. Acts performed as part of the method may be ordered in any suitable manner. Thus, embodiments may be constructed in which acts are performed in a different order than shown, which may include performing some acts simultaneously, even though shown as sequential acts in various embodiments.

All definitions defined and used herein should be understood to control over all dictionary definitions, definitions in documents incorporated by reference, and/or ordinary meanings of the defined terms.

The use of ordinal terms such as "first," "second," "third," and the like in the claims to modify a component element does not by itself connote any priority, precedence, or order of one component element or the temporal order in which acts of a method are performed prior to another component element, but are used merely as labels to distinguish one component element having a certain name from another component element having a same name (but for use of the ordinal term) to distinguish the component elements.

Terms indicating directions such as "top," "bottom," "upper," "lower," "upward" and "downward" are used in connection with some embodiments. These terms are used to refer to the direction of connection to another component (e.g., the surface of a printed circuit board on which the termination assembly is mounted) or based on the orientation of the component shown. It should be appreciated that the electronic components may be used in any suitable orientation. Thus, directional terminology is understood to be relative, rather than fixed to a coordinate system (e.g., the earth's surface) that is considered to be unchanged.

The indefinite articles "a" and "an" as used in the specification and claims should be understood to mean "at least one" unless explicitly stated to the contrary.

As used herein in the specification and claims, the term "at least one" should be understood to mean that at least one element is selected from one or more elements in the list of elements, but does not necessarily include at least one of each element specifically listed in the list of elements, and does not exclude any combination of elements in the list of elements. This definition also allows that elements may optionally be present other than those specifically identified within the list of elements to which the term "at least one" refers, whether related or unrelated to those elements specifically identified.

The term "and/or" as used in the specification and claims should be understood to mean "either or both" of the elements so combined, i.e., elements that in some cases coexist and in other cases separately exist. A plurality of elements listed as "and/or" should be interpreted in the same manner, i.e., as "one or more" elements so combined. In addition to elements specifically identified by the "and/or" clause, other elements may optionally be present, whether related or unrelated to those elements specifically identified. Thus, as a non-limiting example, a reference to "a and/or B" when used in conjunction with an open language such as "comprising" may in one embodiment represent only a (optionally including elements other than B); while in another embodiment, is limited to B (optionally including elements other than a); in yet another embodiment, both a and B are represented (optionally including other elements); etc.

The term "or" as used in the specification and claims should be understood to have the same meaning as "and/or" as defined above. For example, when items in a list are separated, "or" and/or "should be construed as inclusive, i.e., including at least one of a number of elements or a series of elements, but also including more than one, and optionally including additional unrecited items. Only if an opposite term is explicitly indicated, e.g. "only one" or "exactly one", or "consisting of … …" as used in the claims, means that exactly one element of a number or series of elements is included. In general, the term "or" as used herein when preceded by an exclusive term such as "either," "one of," "only one of," or "exactly one of," should be interpreted to mean only an exclusive choice (i.e., "one or the other, not both"). As used in the claims, "consisting essentially of … …" shall have the ordinary meaning as used in the patent statutes.

Also, the phraseology and terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. Terms such as "comprising," "including," "having," "containing," or "involving," and variations thereof herein, are used to encompass the items listed thereafter and equivalents thereof as well as additional items.

Claims

1. An interposer, comprising:

an insulating housing, the insulating housing comprising:

a top surface and a bottom surface opposite the top surface;

A plurality of first openings extending between the top surface and the bottom surface and arranged in a plurality of parallel rows; and

A channel extending between the top surface and the bottom surface and disposed between two rows of the first opening adjacent opposite sides of the channel, respectively;

A plurality of electrical contacts each disposed within a corresponding one of the plurality of first openings, wherein each electrical contact includes a first contact portion extending above the top surface of the insulating housing; and

A shield disposed in the channel, the shield comprising a plurality of first shield contacts extending from a first edge of the shield, wherein the plurality of first shield contacts extend through the top surface of the insulating housing.

2. An interposer according to claim 1, wherein:

The channel is partially closed on the top surface of the insulating housing such that a plurality of second openings are provided on the top surface along an elongation direction of the channel; and

The shield contacts of the first plurality of shield contacts extend through corresponding openings of the second plurality of openings.

3. The interposer of claim 1, wherein the shield is disposed between and adjacent to a first set of electrical contacts of the plurality of electrical contacts and a second set of electrical contacts of the plurality of electrical contacts, whereby the shield reduces cross-talk between signals carried by the first set of electrical contacts and the second set of electrical contacts, the first set of electrical contacts being located in openings in a first one of the plurality of parallel rows and the second set of electrical contacts being located in openings in a second one of the plurality of parallel rows.

4. An interposer according to claim 3, wherein:

For each electrical contact of the first and second sets of electrical contacts, the first contact portion of the electrical contact extends a first distance above the top surface of the insulating housing when the electrical contact is in an uncompressed state;

for each shield contact of the plurality of first shield contacts of the shield, a contact portion of the shield contact extends a second distance above the top surface of the insulating housing when the shield contact is in an uncompressed state; and

The second distance is shorter than the first distance.

5. An interposer according to claim 1, wherein:

Each of the plurality of first shield contacts includes a beam configured to deflect at least partially in a first plane perpendicular to the top and bottom surfaces of the insulating housing; and

A portion of the beam of the shield contact is in contact with a shield body of the shield when a shield contact of the plurality of first shield contacts is in a compressed state.

6. An interposer according to claim 5, wherein:

When the first shield contact is in the compressed state, the first shield contact is in contact with a corner of the first edge, whereby the first shield contact is separated from the shield body.

7. An interposer according to claim 5, wherein:

When the first shield contact is in the compressed state, the first shield contact is bifurcated into the shield body via a tapping region located at a corner where a side of the shield body of the shield intersects the first edge.

8. An interposer according to claim 5, wherein:

For each of the plurality of first shield contacts, the beam includes:

a first portion extending from the first edge of the shield and disposed in the first plane; and

A second portion extending from the first portion and having at least a portion curved away from the first plane.

9. The interposer of claim 8, wherein for each of the plurality of first shield contacts, the second portion of the beam comprises:

a first portion extending from the first portion of the beam and disposed in the first plane; and

An end portion extending from the first portion of the second portion of the beam at a non-zero angle relative to the first plane and configured to contact the first edge when the shield contact is in the compressed state.

10. The interposer of claim 9, wherein, for each of the plurality of first shield contacts:

the beam extends a distance from the first edge of the shield to provide a gap such that the beam is not in contact with the first edge when a shield contact of the plurality of first shield contacts is in the compressed state.

11. The interposer of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of electrical contacts further comprises a second contact portion that extends below the bottom surface of the insulating housing.

12. An interposer according to claim 1, wherein:

The channel includes an inner wall, and

The shield includes one or more tabs that press against the inner wall of the channel such that the shield is retained in the channel.

13. A method for manufacturing an interposer, comprising:

Inserting a plurality of electrical contacts into corresponding first openings extending between a top surface of a housing and a bottom surface opposite the top surface, wherein the first openings are arranged in a plurality of rows;

Stamping a shield from a sheet metal, the shield including a plurality of shield contacts extending from a first edge of the shield; and

The shield is inserted into a channel of the housing such that the plurality of shield contacts extend through the top surface, wherein the channel is disposed between adjacent two rows of the first opening.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein:

the channel of the housing is partially closed at the top surface of the housing such that a plurality of second openings are provided on the top surface along an elongation direction of the channel; and

Inserting the shield into the channel of the housing includes inserting the shield into the channel such that the plurality of shield contacts of the shield extend above the top surface through corresponding openings of the plurality of second openings.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the method further comprises:

holding the shield in the channel, wherein:

Stamping the shield includes stamping one or more tabs in the shield; and

Retaining the shield in the channel includes engaging the one or more tabs with a wall of the channel.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein the method further comprises:

A portion of each of the plurality of shield contacts is bent away from a plane of the shield prior to inserting the shield into the passageway of the housing.

17. An interposer, comprising:

an insulating housing, the insulating housing comprising:

a top surface and a bottom surface opposite the top surface;

A plurality of electrical contacts disposed in at least two parallel rows at least partially in the insulating housing, wherein each electrical contact includes a first contact portion extending above the top surface of the insulating housing; and

A shield, the shield comprising:

A body disposed at least partially in the insulating housing between adjacent two of the at least two parallel rows; and

A plurality of first shield contacts connected to the body,

Wherein:

The plurality of first shield contacts extend through the top surface of the insulating housing; and

The plurality of first shield contacts are configured such that when the top surface of the interposer is compressed against a substrate, a shield contact of the plurality of first shield contacts the body of the shield.

18. An interposer according to claim 17, wherein:

Each of the plurality of shield contacts includes a beam including a first end coupled to and extending from the body, and a second end coupled to and bent away from the body; and

For each of the plurality of shield contacts, the first end of the beam is coplanar with the body of the shield and the second end of the beam has a distal contact end that curves out of the plane of the body of the shield, wherein the distal contact end is configured to contact the body of the shield.

19. An interposer according to claim 18, wherein:

For each of the plurality of shield contacts:

the beam includes an edge and a broad side wider than the edge; and

The shield contact is configured for contacting the body of the shield via contact between a broad side of the distal contact end of the beam and the body of the shield.

20. An interposer according to claim 19, wherein:

the shield includes an edge adjacent the top surface of the insulating housing; and

For each of the plurality of shield contacts:

the beam includes an edge and a broad side wider than the edge; and

The shield contact is configured for contacting the body of the shield via contact between a broad side of the distal contact end of the beam and the edge of the shield.