Breaking the patent wall: how a copper alloy strip maker moved up

As AI data centres move toward 1.6T and electric vehicles shift from 800V toward 1000V, connector makers increasingly find that the limit is not design capability but the physical ceiling of upstream materials. Copper alloys have moved from a single-property requirement to a system solution.

On the vehicle side, current rising from 50A to 150A sharply increases temperature rise. Conventional tin-phosphor bronze shows rapid stress relaxation under sustained temperatures above 150°C combined with high current, and contact resistance climbs with it. The industry needs materials that retain most of their stress at 150–200°C.

On the computing side the conflict is sharper: connector pitch down to 0.6mm or less demands terminal position tolerance within ±0.02mm; 112G–1.6T links require conductivity above 80% IACS, sometimes 90%, while miniaturisation pushes yield strength higher. High conductivity and high strength are inherently in tension.

At electronica China 2026, Xinke Material described its approach: alloys such as C7025 and C18150 use nanoscale precipitation strengthening to combine conductivity with stress-relaxation resistance at high temperature, alongside in-house grades for high-speed links. The material supplier's role is shifting from following established grades to proposing verified selection schemes.