High performance properties, for high frequency applications, by combining silver coatings and Rheo cast aluminium - Hi2CoRe

Project summary

Different types of filters, waveguides and horn antennas are used by the telecommunication and measurement technology industry today (in e.g. radars, mobile phone systems, and industrial microwave applications). All these components are partly consisting of hollow three-dimensional structures, which often are casted in aluminium. The precision is usually very high and should be kept in the range of a few micro meters. To obtain such a precision mechanical pre-treatment is necessary. This can be achieved by using Rheo cast technology. In order to minimize in the electromagnetic losses the components are coated with silver by electroplating. The electric conductivity and the smoothness of the silver coating are essential since the high frequency electromagnetic signals are only conducted in the upper few micro meters or less of the coating. At the same time the geometry of the components is very complicated to electroplate, having high aspect ratio (ratio between depth and width) and a lot of small blind holes. The present consortium have realised that the main constraint in producing high quality waveguides and likewise components, will soon become the quality of the silver plating including proper pre-treatment of the precise Rheo casted components. Therefore, the consortium wants to conduct a project with the purpose of realising highly functional silver coatings on complex shaped, Rheo cast, aluminium components for telecom applications by the use of bipolar pulse plating, optimised with the help of computer modelling.