WO2006053030A2

WO2006053030A2 - Power terminal for lga socket

Info

Publication number: WO2006053030A2
Application number: PCT/US2005/040570
Authority: WO
Inventors: Kent E. Regnier; Samuel C. Ramey
Original assignee: Molex Incorporated
Priority date: 2004-11-12
Filing date: 2005-11-10
Publication date: 2006-05-18
Also published as: WO2006053030A3; TW200631247A; TWI288501B

Abstract

A land grid array (LGA) socket for delivering power from a printed wiring board to a microprocessor chip, and power terminals for use in the LGA socket. The power terminals are such that they can interface with the standard array of contact pads on both the printed wiring board and the microprocessor chip, by using multiple contact pads per power terminal as compared to signal terminals that only use a single contact pad per signal terminal.

Description

POWER TERMESfAL FOR LGA SOCKET

Field of the Invention:

The present invention relates to a land grid array (LGA) socket connector, and more particularly, for delivering power from a printed wiring board to a microprocessor microprocessor chip.

Background of the Invention:

As microprocessor chips become faster and more powerful there is a need to operate the microprocessor chips with higher currents. There is also a need to provide power to the microprocessor chips without complicating the construction of the printed wiring board. The present invention provides a socket, which provides for the transfer of high currents to the microprocessor chip. Other features and advantages will become apparent upon reading the attached description of the invention, in combination with a study of the drawings.

Objects and Summary of the Invention:

An object of the present invention is to provide a socket for electrically connecting a microprocessor chip and a printed wiring board.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a socket through which relatively high currents can be passed from the printed wiring board to the microprocessor chip. Another object of the present invention is to provide a socket for passing power from the printed wiring board to the microprocessor chip in a simple manner.

Brief Description of the Drawings:

The organization and manner of the structure and operation of the invention, together with further objects and advantages thereof, may best be understood by reference to the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein like reference numerals identify like elements in which:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a socket, which incorporates the features of the present invention; FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the socket of FIG. 1; FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a power frame having power terminals mounted therein in accordance with a first embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the power frame and power terminals of FIG. 3; FIG. 5 is a perspective of a power terminal of FIG. 3 with a portion of the retaining wall removed;

FIG. 6 is a partially exploded, perspective view of the power terminal of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a partially exploded, perspective view of the power terminal of FIG. 5;

FIG. 8a is a front view of a plate of the power terminal of FIG. 5; FIG. 8b is a top view of a plate of the power terminal of FIG. 5;

FIG. 8c is a side view of a plate of the power terminal of FIG. 5;

FIG. 8d is a rear view of a plate of the power terminal of FIG. 5;

FIG. 9 is a front perspective view of a portion of the socket in contact with a printed wiring board; FIG. 9a is an enlarged view of a portion of FIG. 9;

FIG. 10 is a partial cross-sectional view of a portion of the socket including the power terminals of FIG. 3 in contact with a printed wiring board and a microprocessor chip;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a power frame and an array of power terminals in accordance with a second embodiment of the invention; FIG. 12 is a perspective view of a power terminal of FIG. 11;

FIG. 13 is a partially exploded perspective view of the power terminal of FIG. 12;

FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view of the power terminal of FIG. 12;

FIG. 15a is a side elevational view of the power terminal of FIG. 12;

FIG. 15b is a front elevational view of the power terminal of FIG. 12; FIG. 15c is a side elevational view of the power terminal of FIG. 12; and

FIG. 16 is a partial cross-sectional view of a portion of a socket including two power terminals in accordance with the second embodiment of the invention.

Detailed Description of the Illustrated Embodiments: While the invention may be susceptible to embodiment in different forms, there is shown in the drawings, and herein will be described in detail, specific embodiments with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered an exemplification of the principles of the invention, and is not intended to limit the invention to that as illustrated and described herein. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a LGA socket 10 is provided for electrically connecting a printed wiring board to a microprocessor chip. The LGA socket 10 includes an insulative housing 11 that provides an array of terminals, which provide electrical connection between a plurality of contact pads 13 on a printed wiring board 15, and a plurality of contact pads 29 on a microprocessor chip 27 (see FIGS. 10 and 16). In the embodiment shown, power terminals 14 are provided at the center of the array and signal terminals 16 surround the power terminals 14. Alternatively, the power terminals 14 may be located at the perimeter of the array, interposed within the array or otherwise placed as required to transfer power from the contact pads 29 on a microprocessor chip 27 to the contact pads 13 on the printed wiring board 15. As shown in FIG. 2, the socket 10 also includes a power frame 20, a first stiffener 22, a second stiffener 24, a film carrier 26, a first film support 28, a second film support 30, a first clamp 32, a second clamp 34, and a socket frame 36.

The film carrier 26 is preferably formed from a thin flexible film commonly sold under the trademark KAPTON®. The film carrier 26 is generally rectangularly shaped and includes an upper surface 40 and a lower surface 42. Mounting edges 44a, 44b, 44c, 44d are provided at the perimeter of the film carrier 26. Apertures 46 are provided through the mounting edges 44a, 44d for securing the film carrier 26 to the socket frame 36 as will be described herein. A rectangularly shaped power area aperture 48 is provided for receiving the power frame 20. The power frame 20 is retained within the aperture 48 through an interference fit. Alternatively, an array of apertures can be provided at the center of the film carrier 26 for receiving individual power terminals. A plurality of spaced apart signal terminal passageways 50 are provided through the film carrier 26. A signal terminal 16 can be mounted within each signal terminal passageway 50. As shown, the signal terminal passageways 50 generally extend from the aperture 48 to the mounting edges 44a, 44b, 44c, 44d.

The power frame 20 houses a plurality of power terminals 52. The power terminals 52 connect the power pads of a printed wiring board 15 to power pads of a microprocessor chip. The power frame 20 is mounted within the aperture 48 of the film carrier 26. Details of the power frame 20 and the power terminals 14 will be discussed herein. The socket frame 36 is generally rectangularly shaped, is generally formed from plastic, and includes an upper surface 56 and a lower surface 58. The socket frame 36 includes a rear member 60, a front member 62, a left member 64 and a right member 66. An elongated U-shaped recess 68 is formed along the left member 64 and an elongated U-shaped recess 70 is formed along the front member 62. Mounting apertures 69 are provided through the rear and left members 60, 64.

First and second clamps 32, 34 each provide a generally elongated U-shaped channel 72, 74 for retaining the film carrier 26 on the socket frame 36 as will be described herein. The first clamp 32 is slightly shorter than the length of the U-shaped recess 68 of the left member 64 of the socket frame 36. The U-shaped channel 72 is sized relative to the U-shaped recess 68 so that the first clamp 32 can be snap-fit to the left member 64 of the socket frame 36. The second clamp 34 is slightly shorter than the length of the U-shaped recess 70 of the front member 62 of the socket frame 36. The U-shaped channel 74 is sized relative to the U- shaped recess 70 so that the second clamp 34 can be snap-fit to the front member 62 of the socket frame 36.

First stiffener 22 and first support member 28 are approximately the same length and width as the rear mounting edge 44a of the film carrier 26. Apertures are provided through the first stiffener 22 and are aligned with the apertures in the rear mounting edge 44a of the film carrier 26. Apertures are provided through the first support 28 and are aligned with the apertures in the first stiffener 22 and the rear mounting edge 44a. Second stiffener 24 and second support member 30 are approximately the length and width as the right mounting edge 44d of the film carrier 26. Apertures are provided through the second stiffener 24 and are aligned with the apertures in the right mounting edge 44d of the film carrier 26. Apertures 46 are provided through the second support 30 and are aligned with the apertures in the second stiffener 24 and the right mounting edge 44d.

The film carrier 26 is placed on the upper surface 56 of the socket frame 36 so that the rear mounting edge 44a of the film carrier 26 rests on the rear member 60 of the socket frame 36, the front mounting edge 44b of the film carrier 26 rests on the front member 62 of the socket frame 36, the left mounting edge 44c of the film carrier 26 rests on the left member 64 of the socket frame 36, and the right mounting edge 44d rests on the right member 66 of the socket frame 36. The first stiffener 22 is placed above the rear mounting edge 44a of the film carrier 26 and the first support 28 is placed under the rear member 60 of the socket frame 36. Fasteners are passed through the apertures in the first stiffener 22, through the apertures in the rear mounting edge 44a of the film carrier 26, through the apertures in the rear member 60 of the socket frame 36, through the apertures in the first support member 28, and secured with nuts. The second stiffener 24 is placed above the right mounting edge 44d of the film carrier 26 and the second support 30 is placed under the right member 66 of the socket frame 36. Bolts are passed through the apertures in the second stiffener 24, through the apertures in the right mounting edge 44d of the film carrier 26, through the apertures in the right member 66 of the socket frame 36, through the apertures in the second support member 30, and secured with nuts. The left mounting edge 44c of the film carrier 26 is then wrapped around the left member 64 of the socket frame 36 so that the film carrier 26 contacts the lower surface 58 of the socket frame 36. The first clamp 32 is then aligned with the recess 68 in the left member 64 of the socket frame 36 and snap-fit to the left member 64 of the socket frame 36 to secure the left mounting edge 44c of the film carrier 26 to the socket frame 36. The front mounting edge 44b of the film carrier 26 is then wrapped around the front member 62 of the socket frame 36 so that the film carrier 26 contacts the lower surface 58 of the socket frame 36. The second clamp 34 is then aligned with the recess 70 in the front member 62 of the socket frame 36 and snap fit to the front member 62 of the socket frame 36 to secure the front mounting edge 44b of the film carrier 26 to the socket frame 36.

As best shown in FIG. 10, the signal terminals 16 are generally V-shaped. The signal terminal 16 includes upper arms 17 and lower arms 19 extending from a base portion 21. The signal terminals 16 can be mounted to the film carrier 26 by placing a portion of the base portion 21 of each terminal within a signal terminal passageway 50 through the film carrier 26. Upon mounting the signal terminal 16 within the film carrier 26, the upper arms 17 extend above the upper surface 40 of the film carrier 26 and the lower arms 19 extend below the lower surface 42 of the film carrier 26. A first embodiment of the power terminals 52 is shown in FIGS. 3-10 and a second embodiment of the power terminals 200 is shown in FIGS. 11-16.

Attention is invited to a first embodiment of power terminals 52. An enlarged view of the power frame 20 and power terminals 52 is shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. As shown in FIG. 4, the power frame 20 is generally rectangular and is formed from an insulative material. A rear member 80, a front member 82, a left side member 84 and a right side member 86 define the perimeter of the power frame 20. The power frame 20 includes a plurality horizontal members 88 which extend from the left side member 84 to the right side member 86 and a plurality of vertical members 90 which extend from the rear member 80 to the front member 82. The horizontal members 88 and vertical members 90 intersect to form a plurality of cells 92. Each cell 92 includes an open upper end and an open lower end and receives a power terminal 52.

Each power terminal 52 includes an insulative retaining wall 96 which is sized to fit within a cell 92 of the power frame 20. Each retaining wall 96 includes a rear member 98, a front member 100, a left side member 102 and a right side member 104. Three upper protrusions 106 and three lower protrusions 108 extend from the outer surface of the rear and front members 98, 100. The protrusions 106, 108 extending from the outer surface of five front members 100 are shown. The upper and lower protrusions 106,108 contact the horizontal members 88 of the power frame 20 to retain the power terminals 52 within the power frame 20 through an interference fit. Alternatively, if the power frame 20 is not used with the film carrier 26, the protrusions 106, 108 can be used to engage the film carrier 26. When used in this manner, the three upper protrusions 106 engage the upper surface 40 of the film carrier 26 and the three lower protrusions 108 engage the lower surface 42 of the film carrier 26. FIGS. 5-7 show one of the power terminals 52 with the understanding that the remaining power terminals are formed in an identical manner. Power terminal 52 includes the retaining wall 96 (the front member of which is not shown in the drawings), a plurality of plates 110 and a tube 112. An aperture 114 is provided through the front and rear members 100, 98 of the retaining wall 96 for receiving the tube 112 as will be described herein. The aperture 114 through the rear member 98 is shown in FIGS. 6 and 7.

The power terminal 52 includes six conductive planar plates 110. As best shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, each plate 110 includes a generally U-shaped main body portion 120 and a generally T-shaped tail portion 122. The main body portion 120 includes a base 124 and two legs 126 extending from the base 124. The legs 126 extend generally parallel to each other and a gap 128 is provided between the legs 126. A rounded foot 130 extends from the free end of each leg 126 in the direction opposite the gap 128. The tail portion 122 extends from the base 124 of the main body portion 120 in a direction opposite the legs 126. The tail portion 122 includes a base 123 and arms 125 extending from the base 123. The base 123 of the tail 122 is connected to the base 124 of the main body portion 120. Free ends 132 are provided by the arms 125 of the tail portion 122. Outwardly projecting bumps 134 are provided at the free ends 132 of the arms 125.

The plates 110 are aligned parallel with one another to create a "stack" 140 of plates 110. The orientation of the plates 110 in the stack 140 are alternated so that the bumps 134 on the tail portion 122 of one plate 110 contacts the free ends 130 of the main body portion 120 of the adjacent plate 110. The stack 140 provides three upper feet 130 proximate the left side member 102 of the retaining wall 96 and three lower feet 130 proximate the left side member 102 of the retaining wall 96. The stack 140 also provides three upper feet 130 proximate the right side member 104 of the retaining wall 96 and three lower feet 130 proximate the right side member 104 of the retaining wall 96. The bumps 134 on the tail portion 122 of each plate 110 create spacing between the plates 110 and therefore create an air dielectric between the plates 110 of the power terminals 52.

The alternating plates 110 form a tube passageway 138 (see FIG. 7) between the base of legs 126 of the plates 110 of the power terminals 52. The tube 112 is positioned within the tube passageway 138. The tube 112 may be formed from an elastomeric material. The stack 140 of plates 110 and the tube 112 are positioned within the retaining wall 96 and the tube 112 extends within the apertures 114 in the rear member 98 and the front member 100 of the retaining wall 96 to retain the stack 140 within the retaining wall 96.

Contact between the power terminal 52 and the signal terminals 16 of the socket 10 and the contact pads 13 of the printed wiring board 14 are shown in FIGS. 9 and 10. It should be noted that the film carrier 26 has been removed from FIG. 10 for clarity. As shown in FIGS. 9 and 9a, the printed circuit board 15 of FIG. 2 is inverted such that the array of contact pads 13 on the surface of the printed wiring board 15 are proximate the film carrier 26. Each contact pad 13 is spaced from an adjacent contact pad 13 to provide a non- conductive path 144 between each of the contact pads 13. Free ends of the upper arms 17 of the signal terminals 16 contact the contact pads 13 of the printed wiring board 15. Each signal terminal 16 contacts a single contact pad 13 on the printed wiring board 15. Each power terminal 52, however, contacts two pads 13 of the printed wiring board 15. The three upper feet 130 proximate the left side member 102 of the retaining wall 96 contact a first pad 13 of the printed wiring board 15 and the three upper feet 130 proximate the right side member 104 of the retaining wall 96 contact a second pad 13 of the printed wiring board 15. The power terminals 52 are dimensioned such that the upper feet 130 of the plates 110 of the power terminal 52 proximate the left side member 102 of the retaining wall 96 and the upper feet 130 of the plates 110 of the power terminal 52 proximate the right side member 104 of the retaining wall 96 span the non-conductive path 144.

A microprocessor chip 27 is aligned with the signal terminals 16 and the power terminals 14 of the socket 10 in the same manner as the printed wiring board 15 is aligned with the terminals 16, 14. Similar to the printed wiring board 15, the microprocessor chip 27 provides an array of pads 29. The pads 29 are spaced from each other to provide a non- conductive pathway 31 between the pads 29. The three lower feet 130 proximate the left side member 102 of the retaining wall 96 contact a first pad 29 on the microprocessor chip 27 and the three lower feet 130 proximate the right side member 104 of the retaining wall 96 contact a second pad 29 of the microprocessor chip 27. Free ends of the lower arms 19 of the signal terminal 16 contact a contact pad 29 of the microprocessor chip 27. When the socket 10 is mounted between a printed wiring board 15 and a microprocessor chip 27, the terminals 16, 52 of the socket 10 may be compressed. When a downward force is applied to the upper feet 130 of the plates 110 and/or an upward force is applied to the lower feet 130 of the plates 110, the elastomeric tube 112 compresses allowing the feet 130 to deflect towards each other.

The socket 10 provides power terminals 52 which are much larger than the signal terminals 16. Although the power terminals 52 are much larger than the signal terminals 16, the size and location of the pads 13, 29 with which are mated by the power terminals 52 do not need to be modified. Because current carried by an object travels to the perimeter of the object, the greater the surface area of a body, the more current it can carry. As a result, the "stacked" plates 110 provide a large amount of surface area through which current can travel thereby allowing the power terminals to carry a large amount of current.

Attention is invited to the second embodiment of the power terminals 200 shown in FIGS. 11-16. An array of power terminals 200 is provided in the power frame 20. The power frame 20 of the second embodiment is identical to the power frame 20 of the first embodiment and therefore the specifics are not repeated herein. Each power terminal 200 includes an insulative retaining wall 210 which is sized to fit within a cell 92 of the power frame 20. Each retaining wall 210 includes a rear member 212, a front member 214, a left side member 216 and a right side member 218. Three upper protrusions 220 and three lower protrusions 222 extend from the outer surface of the front 214 and rear 212 members. The upper and lower protrusions 220, 222 provide an interference fit with the horizontal members 88 of the power frame 20 to retain the power terminals 200 within the power frame 20. Alternatively, if the power frame 20 is not used with the film carrier 26, the protrusions 220, 222 can be used to engage the film carrier 26. When used in this manner, the three upper protrusions 220 engage the upper surface of the film carrier 26 and the three lower protrusions 222 engage the lower surface of the film carrier 26.

Each power terminal 200 includes the retaining wall 210, an elastomeric core 226, and a wire 230 wrapped around the core 226.

As shown in FIG. 14, each of the inner surfaces of the left side member 216 and the right side member 218 includes a projection 232 for engaging the core 226 as will be described herein.

The core 226 of the power terminal 200 is generally an elongated oval shape and includes a left end 226a and a right end 226b which are parallel to each other. The core 226 also includes a rounded upper surface 234, a rounded lower surface 236, a planar front surface 238, and a planar rear surface 240 (see FIG. 15a). The front surface 238 and the rear surface 240 are parallel to each other. As best shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, the core 226 includes an upper passageway 242, a central passageway 244 and a lower passageway 246 which are spaced apart from each other. Each passageway 242, 244, 246 is cylindrically- shaped and extends from the left end 226a of the core 226 to the right end 226b of the core 226.

The wire 230 is wrapped around the exterior surface of the core 226. The wire 230 includes a first end 248 and a second end 250. Winding of the wire 230 is terminated so that the free ends 248, 250 of the wire 230 are aligned with the front or rear wall 238, 240 of the core 226. An aperture is provided in the front surface 238 of the core 226 for receiving the first end 248 of the wire 230 and an aperture is provided in the rear surface 240 of the core 226 for receiving the second end 250 of the wire 230. Positioning of the free ends 248, 250 with the apertures prevents unwinding of the wire 230 from around the core 226. Upon positioning the core 226 within the retaining wall 210, the free ends 248, 250 of the wire 230 will be positioned proximate the interior surface of the front and/or rear walls 212, 214 of the retaining wall 210 to further prevent unwinding of the wire 230 from around the core 226. In addition, when the core 226 with the wire 230 wound therearound is positioned within the retaining wall 210, the projections 232 on the left and right side members 216, 218 extend into the central passageway 244 of the core 226 to retain the core 226 and winding 230 within the retaining wall 210.

The wrapped wire 230 of the power terminal 200 provides a terminal with an increased amount of surface area through which current can flow. As shown in FIG. 16, the power terminals 200 and the signal terminal 16 provided electrical connection between the contact pads 13 of the printed wiring board 15 and the contact pads 29 of the microprocessor chip 27. It should be noted that the film carrier 26 has been removed from FIG. 16 for clarity. The left end 226a of the core 226 of each power terminal 200 is positioned proximate a first pad 13 of the printed wiring board 15 and the right end 226b of the core 226 is positioned proximate a second contact pad 13 or the printed wiring board 15. Each power terminal 200 therefore spans a non-conductive path 144 between the contact pads 13. The left end 226a of the core 226 of each power terminal 200 is also positioned proximate a first pad 29 on the microprocessor chip 27 and the right end 226b of the core 226 is positioned proximate a second contact pad 29 on the microprocessor chip 27. The power terminal 200 therefore spans a non-conductive path 31 between the contact pads 29. Like the first embodiment, each signal terminal 16 contact a single contact pad 13 of the printed wiring board.

When a socket 10 including the power terminals 200 is mounted between a printed wiring board 15 and a microprocessor chip 29, the terminals 16, 200 of the socket may be compressed. When a downward force is applied to the upper surface 234 of the core 226 and/or an upward force is applied to the lower surface 236 of the core 226, the passageways

242, 244, and 246 allow the elastomeric core 226 to compress.

Each of the power terminals 52, 200 provides a terminal with a relatively large surface area. The power terminals 52, 200 are assembled in a socket 10 that provides a mating connection between a printed wiring board 15 and a microprocessor chip. The contact pads on the printed wiring board are typically provided at a pitch of 1 millimeter.

The terminals typically mated to the microprocessor chip and the printed wiring board have a one-to-one relationship with the contact pads 13 of the printed wiring board. The power terminals 52, 200, however, are much larger than the typical terminals. As a result, the power terminals 52, 200 contact two contact pads 13 on the printed wiring board and two contact pads 29 on the microprocessor chip. By simply spanning the non-conductive pathways 144,

31 between the contact pads 13, 29 the printed wiring board design and the microprocessor chip design do not need to be modified to accommodate the larger power terminals 52, 200.

While a preferred embodiment of the invention is shown and described, it is envisioned that those skilled in the art may devise various modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the foregoing description and the appended claims.

Claims

CLAIMS;What is claimed is:

1. A power terminal for providing an electrical connection between mated contact pads comprising: an insulative retaining wall having two open ends; a plurality of plates positioned within said retaining wall, wherein said plates are aligned in a parallel manner to form a stack and a portion of said plates extends through each of said open ends of said retaining wall for contacting the contact pads.

2. A power terminal as defined in claim 1, wherein each of the plates is generally U shaped.

3. A power terminal as defined in claim 2, wherein the U shaped plate defines a gap.

4. A power terminal as defined in claim 3, wherein a tube is placed within the gap defined by the U shaped plates.

5. A power terminal as defined in claim 4, wherein the tube is elastomeric for resisting compressive forces applied to the plates.

6. A power terminal as defined in claim 4, wherein the retaining wall includes apertures on opposing walls of the retaining wall to receive the tube.

7. A power terminal as defined in claim 1, wherein each of the plates consists of a generally U shaped main body portion and a generally T shaped tail portion.

8. A power terminal as defined in claim 7, wherein the main body portion includes a base and two legs extending from the base in the same direction, and a gap is defined between the two legs.

9. A power terminal as defined in claim 8, wherein at least one of the legs includes a protrusion extending from a distal end of the leg in a direction away from the gap.

10. A power terminal as defined in claim 8, wherein each of the legs includes a protrusion extending from a distal end of the leg in a direction away from the gap to make contact with a mating contact pad.

11. A power terminal as defined in claim 7, wherein the tail portion of at least one of the plates includes at least one projection for contacting an adjacent plate.

12. A power terminal for providing an electrical connection between mated contact pads comprising: an insulative retaining wall having two open ends; an elastomeric core, a wire wound around said elastomeric core and positioned within said retaining wall; and wherein said wire extends through each of said open ends of said retaining wall for contacting the contact pads.

13. A power terminal as defined in claim 12, wherein said core further includes at least one passage way extending therethrough.

14. A power terminal as defined in claim 13, wherein the insulative retaining wall includes a projection on opposing walls to receive the at least one passage way of the core.

15. A socket for providing electrical connection between a first array of contact pads and a second array of contact pads, the socket comprising: a socket frame, at least one power terminal mounted in the socket frame, wherein each said power terminal contacts multiple contact pads of the first array; and at least one signal terminal mounted in the socket frame, wherein each said signal terminal contacts a single contact pad of the first array.

16. A socket as defined in claim 15, wherein said socket includes a plurality of power terminals forming a power frame, wherein said power frame defines a plurality of cells for receiving said plurality of power terminals.

17. A socket as defined in claim 16, wherein the power frame if located in an aperture in the socket frame.

18. A socket as defined in claim 15, wherein the power terminals are located on the perimeter of the socket frame, and the signal terminals are located within the perimeter formed by the power terminals.

19. A socket as defined in claim 15, wherein the power terminals and the signal terminals are interspersed within the socket frame.

20. A socket as defined in claim 15, wherein the power terminals are located together in an array.

21. A socket as defined in claim 15, wherein the structure of the signal terminals are different from the structure of the power terminals.

22. A socket as defined in claim 15, wherein the power terminals comprise a plurality of generally U shaped plates.

22. A socket as defined in claim 15, wherein the power terminals comprise a wire wound around a core.

23. A socket as defined in claim 23, wherein the core is elastomeric.