Shielded fine-pitch high-performance impedance tunable interconnect

A method of fabricating a socket, the method comprising:

• forming a pin block from a material having a first permittivity, forming of the pin block comprising:
• providing fine pitch openings for pins to extend completely through the pin block at predetermined locations;
• forming a wall between at least some of the openings;
• and
• inserting the pins into the openings to enable electrical contact to an electronic package, wherein:
• the pins include pins of differential pin pairs,
• each differential pin pair has a first pin and a second pin extending in a first direction from the first pin,
• adjacent differential pin pairs in a second direction orthogonal to the first direction are separated by a rectangular wall that extends in the first direction, the rectangular wall separating the adjacent differential pin pairs is limited in the first direction to separate only one pin of each of the adjacent differential pin pairs,
• differential pin pairs that are adjacent to each other in the first direction are separated by a medium having a single permittivity, and
• a region disposed between at least some adjacent pins within the pin block has an effective permittivity that is less than the first permittivity to reduce a differential impedance of at least some of the differential pin pairs.

An apparatus for a pin assembly, the apparatus comprising:

• a pin block formed from a material having a first permittivity;
• and
• pins disposed in the pin block in a lattice of predetermined fine pitch locations, the pins extending completely through the pin block to provide electrical contact to an electronic package disposed on the pin block, the pins including differential pin pairs,
• wherein the pins include:
• a first differential pin pair extending in a first direction,
• a second differential pin pair extending in the first direction and adjacent to the first differential pin pair in the first direction,
• a third differential pin pair extending in the first direction, adjacent to the first differential pin pair in a second direction orthogonal to the first direction and adjacent to the second differential pin pair in the second direction,
• a fourth differential pin pair extending in the first direction, adjacent to the third differential pin pair in the first direction, and adjacent to the second differential pin pair in the second direction,
• the first differential pin pair and the third differential pin pair are separated by a wall-extending in the first direction, the wall is limited in the first direction to separate only one pin of each of the first differential pin pair and the third differential pin pair,
• the first differential pin pair and the second differential pin pair are separated by a medium having a single permittivity, and
• a region disposed between at least some adjacent pins within the pin block has an effective permittivity that is less than the first permittivity to reduce a differential impedance of at least some of the differential pin pairs.