Gold Finger Protective Coating
CAS Number: 13453-07-1
Gold finger protective coating is a hard gold electroplating solution or post-treatment used to protect PCB edge connector contacts (gold fingers) from wear, oxidation, and contact resistance degradation over thousands of insertion cycles. The cobalt-hardened gold deposit meets IPC-4552 and MIL-G-45204 specifications for contact finishes. Applied over a nickel barrier layer to prevent copper diffusion into the gold.
Technical Specifications
| hardness | 150–200 HV (Co-hardened) |
| porosity | <5 pores/cm² at 0.75 µm thickness |
| appearance | Bright, yellow gold deposit |
| goldThickness | 0.76–1.27 µm (standard) / up to 2.54 µm (high wear) |
| insertionCycles | >1000 cycles per IEC 60512-6 |
| contactResistance | <10 mΩ initial |
Applications
- PCB edge connector gold finger plating
- Memory module (DIMM, PCIe) edge contact plating
- High-insertion-cycle connector contacts
- Military and aerospace connector plating
- High-frequency RF connector gold finish
Key Features
- Co-hardened gold for maximum wear resistance
- Low contact resistance over extended insertion life
- Meets IPC-4552 and MIL-G-45204 specifications
- Applied over nickel barrier to prevent copper migration