Product Roundup: EMI/RFI shielding

Where there’s an electrical device, there’s EMI/RFI. Fortunately, an increasing number of products today offer a range of shielding options, from add-on devices to materials, that help suppress these pesky RF spectrum interferences. Here are just a few recent a notable products.

The Integran Nanovate-EM ferromagnetic coating uses a process that directly applies a nanocrystalline metal to metal, polymer, and composite substrates. The coating was created by Integran (www.integran.com) and Magnetic Shield (www.magneticshield.com) as a means to develop markets for the coating in sensors, transducers, and other electronic devices applications that are sensitive to low-frequency magnetic interference. The ferromagnetic coating provides yield strength of ≥900 MPa, with ≥500-VHN hardness, offers high magnetic permiability and saturation performance, and eliminates the need for additional processes after application.

Laird Technologies (www.lairdtech.com) recently releasesed the EMI Gemini family of multiextrusion, bifunctional elastomer shielding gaskets, suited for military, medical, and commercial applications. Extruded in various sizes and profiles, the gaskets feature a thin, electrically-conductive filler elastomer gasket layer and an inner, nonconductive silicone coated core gasket. The substitution of the silicone core greatly reduces the need for conductive metal materials, which reduces the device’s total cost. The sealed devices provide EMI protection performance with minimal deflection. The gasket is manufactured in parallel using a ram and/or screw-type extrusion equipment.

A full line of etched EMI/RF shields with snap-on, snap-off covers is offered by Photofabrication Engineering (www.photofabrication.com), allowing easy access to components within the shields. Standard forming tools are available in any size and shape to create covers that attach onto a fence yet can be removed and replaced easily. The shields feature photochemically-etched fences with grooves etched at approximately 50% of the material thickness, allowing custom spring finger designs to snap into them firmly. Shielding options for circuit board applications include one-or two-piece construction, standard base materials with solderable plating and a solderable nickel-silver base material.

Christina D'Airo