Electronic – Metal connector case connection when using a plastic housing

connectorground

I'm designing a board with 2 SFP connectors and I am not sure what I should connect the cage pins to. The manufacturer recommends connecting the case pins to chassis ground but my product is in a plastic housing.
I read this article but it assumes a metal housing. Should all the case pins be connected directly to ground? Or do I need a local plane under the cage and AC couple it to ground?

Best Answer

The main reason that an SFP connector needs to connect to the chassis is to provide EMI blocking. That is, the cage around the SFP connector forms part of the overall shield that prevents the circuits behind it from radiating.

If you believe your design will not cause radiation even with a plastic housing, there is no particular need to connect the SFP cage to the chassis.

It's probably still a good idea to connect the cage to some circuit ground potential (possibly through a high-value resistor), just to prevent it from being floating metal, which could cause problems of its own, either in terms of radiation or susceptability.