The electrodeposition & material properties of palladium-cobalt

Palladium and its alloys have become the standard precious-metal finishes for high-reliability, high-durability connectors. While pure palladium is preferred for high-temperature automotive applications, palladium-nickel has become the preferred finish for ambient temperature, high-insertion applications, such as edge card connectors. Palladium-nickel, when plated over nickel, is not without its problems, however. Quality control issues related to the measurement of composition and thickness by simple, non-destructive XRF analysis remain a significant concern. Palladium-cobalt does not suffer from this shortcoming and has been found to out-perform palladium-nickel for high-durability applications.