SMA connector

SMA connectors are miniature coaxial 50 Ω connectors good to about 20 GHz.

SMA Female (S-6 input)

The male connectors have a protruding center pin and ground shroud that screws on. The female is threaded on the outside. (Note that in the "Reverse Polarity" or "RP-SMA" connectors found in WLAN equipment, the pin is swapped to the shell with the exterior thread.)

SMA are somewhat similar to UHF connectors, but much smaller - initial Tektronix literature^(Note1) calls them "3 mm connectors" - and with much tighter tolerances and better controlled impedance. SMA connnectors are used on the S-50, S-51, S-52, 7T11, S-4, S-6 and many later GHz-class instruments such as the SD-xx series sampling heads.

(1) See Service Scope No. 52, Oct 1968 p.16, Something New in Oscilloscope Connectors

Pictures

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  SMA Male

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  SMA Female