Gold Plating
GOLD ELECTRO DEPOSITED PLATING
Keystone Gold electrodeposited plating has long been used both as an engineering or decorative finish and as a topcoat for other plated metals. Gold is a noble precious metal, which means that it will not oxidize in air, so its electrical conductivity stays uniform over long periods of time. It is ideally suited for electronics and communications applications. Gold plating offers good corrosion resistance, good solderability, and when alloyed with nickel, it has very good wear resistance. This process is offered in both rack and barrel options.
Keystone Gold can be deposited soft or hard, dull or bright. Co-deposited impurities can make soldering more difficult, and for this reason high purity gold plating is preferred. Keystone Gold plating utilizes 24k gold in order to maintain the highest levels of purity. Soldering requirements are best achieved when gold electroplating coatings range between 0.00005 and 0.0001 inch (50 and 100 micro inches) thickness.
Gold Plating Specification:
• MIL-G-45204 Gold Plating, Electrodeposited (This spec has been cancelled, but is still widely used for reference.)
• Type-I 99.7% gold minimum; hardness grade A, B, or C For general-purpose, high-reliability electrical contacts, solderability, and wire wrap connections.
• Type-II 99.0% gold minimum; hardness grade B, C, or D A general-purpose, wear-resistant gold. It will not withstand high-temperature applications because the hardening agents in the gold coating will oxidize.
• Type-III 99.9 % gold minimum; hardness grade A only For semiconductor components, nuclear engineering, thermo compression bonding, and high-temperature application.
Gold Plating Hardness Grades:
- A 90 knoop, maximum
- B 91-129 knoop, inclusive
- C 130-200 knoop, inclusive
- D 201 knoop, minimum
GOLD ELECTRO DEPOSITED PLATING PROCESSES
Keystone offers the following processes for Gold Electroplating Type-I 99.7% gold minimum:
- Hard
- Soft
GOLD ELECTRO DEPOSITED PLATING APPLICATIONS
Keystone Nickel electrodeposited coatings have proved invaluable in countless communications and electronics applications. Some traditional uses of Keystone Gold plating coatings include:
- Military
- Aerospace
- Communications
- Electronics