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Circuit Imaging Overview: Putting Options in Focus
June 6, 2013 |Estimated reading time: 1 minute
The imaging process is arguably the most important step in the manufacture of printed circuits. The modifier “printed” which sits just ahead of “circuits” in the previous sentence makes its importance pointedly clear. As an aficionado of the history of technology, this writer is inevitably drawn to look backward in time to find the roots of technologies. Given that perspective, one will find that imaging, or printing, if the reader prefers, has a long and colorful history in the manufacture of printed circuits as was covered in a previous article on this subject matter. Not surprisingly, significant developments have been made over the years in imaging technology and the pace of development seems to have been accelerating in recent years. What is interesting is that when one does a little digging, he or she will find that technologies tend to be recycled from time to time. For example, look back to the origins of the printed circuit and one will discover that in the very beginning of the printed circuit industry, conductive inks were being printed onto nonconductive substrates to create conductive circuit patterns. Today, under the banner of printed electronics, conductive inks are being printed on to nonconductive substrates to create conductive circuit patterns. It is clearly the same fundamental process; but to be fair, there are important differences.
Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in the April 2013 issue of The PCB Magazine.