Raychem Limited

Nigel R Bates

Leo G Svendsen

Frederick W Hill

Philip Roland Winfield

Low tortuosity porous polymer sheets (25 to 2000 pores per square millimeter) with metal plated in the pores so as to project beyond sheet surfaces provide uniaxial electrical interconnects. A first 'flash' layer of metal is electrolessly plated in the pores and the 'flash' coating of metal is then removed from the sheet surface to isolate the pores electrically from one another. Further plating is then applied only to the already plated pore surfaces to fill the pores and/or project beyond the sheet surface. Solder may fill the plated pores. Polymer layers may be removed from the sheets to expose the metal in the pores. The articles are useful in making electrical connections to the contact pads of microcircuits during testing and assembly into electronic devices.

Anisotropically electrically conductive article

A dimensionally recoverable article, preferably a heat-recoverable article, for providing an electromagnetic shield as a shielding layer which comprises an electrically conductive fabric. The fabric may be a non-woven fabric formed from electrically conductive fabrics or it may be a fabric that has been coated, for example with a metal, after it has been formed in order to render it electrically conductive.

Dimensionally recoverable article

Electrically conductive composite material comprises:

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Swindon, United Kingdom

Nigel R Bates