Historically, palladium has not been widely used in contact technology for separable electronic connectors. This has changed in the last few years. The favourable cost of palladium relative to gold has stimulated research into new manufacturing processes, novel palladium alloys and composite contact finishes which in many applications offer performance equivalent to all-gold systems.
palladium wire, drawn or electroplated is available in various thicknesses and shapes including flat, stranded, PTFE and insulated. Custom manufacturer & distributor of wire for use in the aerospace, electronics, medical, research & consumer industries. ISO 9001 certified, REACH, RoHS and DFARS compliant.
Environmental & Tribological Characteristics:
Palladium and wrought palladium-based materials are prone to wear by thermal transfer, severe metallic transfer, and the formation of coarse abrasive particles on the contact surface. This mechanism is similar to that of other soft metals such as platinum and rhodium. However, palladium possesses some advantages over these other metals in this respect, particularly its low thermal expansion and its ability to absorb hydrogen at room temperature in plating processes.
Frictional Polymerisation:
Palladium, like some of the other platinum group metals, acquires delicate films of hydrocarbons which, if not removed by cleaning, can significantly increase contact resistance. These films are believed to result from polymerisation of adsorbed organic air pollutants. These films were observed after exposure to a variety of non-air-conditioned environments, such as telephone equipment cabinets and factories where chemical processing took place.
These studies have been correlated with those of other platinum group metals, and it is likely that these phenomena are due to the interaction of palladium with these pollutants. It is also possible that the presence of a flash gold coating on palladium and palladium-nickel electrodeposits can mitigate these effects slightly.