50 Ohm SMT Receptacle for 6 GHz RF Signal Paths
The Hirose U.FL-R-SMT(10) is a 50 Ohm surface-mount receptacle from the U.FL series, designed as the board-side half of a snap-on coaxial interconnect for RF modules up to 6 GHz. It carries a single male pin centre contact plated in gold over a brass core, housed in a beige LCP dielectric body with a silver-plated phosphor bronze shell. The 30 mating cycle rating tells you this is a set-and-forget part: it's meant for one-time module installation, not repeated cable swaps in a test fixture.
6 GHz Bandwidth and 50 Ohm Impedance — the RF Fit
The 6 GHz max frequency covers 5 GHz Wi-Fi bands, Bluetooth, Zigbee, and sub-6 GHz cellular; it does not extend into mmWave territory. For a board layout engineer, the SMT footprint and 50 Ohm controlled-impedance launch are the critical parameters — the centre pin height and ground-plane clearance on the PCB must match the U.FL application note to keep the impedance through the transition. The gold-over-brass centre contact resists corrosion in the unmated state, which matters when the receptacle sits on a board waiting for a cable assembly during final assembly.
Snap-On Mate and 30-Cycle Life — Field Realities
The snap-on retention is the U.FL trademark — the plug pushes on and a spring tang locks it in place. No threads, no bayonet, just a push until you feel the click. That simplicity comes with a 30-cycle limit: the spring tang wears with each mate/unmate, and after about 30 cycles the retention force drops off. In a production environment where the cable is mated once and never touched again, 30 cycles is plenty. For a field-service tech swapping a radio module in a base station, the low cycle count means you treat the connector as one-time — if you unmate it, plan to replace it. The -40°C to 90°C operating range covers outdoor telecom cabinets and indoor equipment; it does not reach automotive underhood temperatures.