-
- News
- Books
Featured Books
- pcb007 Magazine
Latest Issues
Current IssueAlternate Metallization Processes
Traditional electroless copper and electroless copper immersion gold have been primary PCB plating methods for decades. But alternative plating metals and processes have been introduced over the past few years as miniaturization and advanced packaging continue to develop.
Technology Roadmaps
In this issue of PCB007 Magazine, we discuss technology roadmaps and what they mean for our businesses, providing context to the all-important question: What is my company’s technology roadmap?
Wet Process Control
In this issue, we examine wet processes and how to obtain a better degree of control that allows usable data to guide our decisions and produce consistently higher-quality products.
- Articles
- Columns
Search Console
- Links
- Media kit
||| MENU - pcb007 Magazine
Basic Principles of Polymer Thick Film Flexible Circuits
August 7, 2014 | Joe Fjelstad, Verdant ElectronicsEstimated reading time: 1 minute
Polymer thick film (PTF) technologies have been used to manufacture printed circuits for decades. In fact, some of the very first circuits ever produced in volume were made by printing conductive inks patterned on an insulating substrate using a stencil. While the versatile nature of the materials used and the simplicity of the manufacturing process have made possible its continued use for more than six decades. In more recent decades, the technology has seen extensive use in the manufacture of inexpensive, polyester film-based membrane switches for electronic devices of every imaginable type, from hand-held calculators and computer keyboards to household appliances including microwave ovens and washers and dryers and beyond.
Polymer thick film circuits are similar in many ways to their rigid and flexible counterparts; however, because of the materials and processes, they have their own very specific design rules. Because most PTF processing is most commonly based on screen printing technology, the limits of design are intrinsically linked to the printed ink’s processing considerations and limitations. For example, there are the unique processing properties for conductive and resistive as well as insulating inks in terms of their thixotropy, which influence their printability. There is also the important consideration of the final values for the conductivity and/or resistivity of the ink used when cured. In addition, there are also the limits of the screen printing materials and the processes used.
Traditional screen printing methods are typically limited to the production of relatively course features (e.g., 250 µm). However, very fine-featured screen printed circuit technology has been reported down to ranges closer to 125 µm. For the foreseeable future, screen printing will remain an important technology for the manufacture of PTF circuits, both rigid and flexible. That said, inkjet printing is well positioned to augment time honored screen print methods. It also opens the door to realizing the possibility of producing circuits economically at a run unit of one, which has been one of the ideals of manufacturing.
Read the full article here.
Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in the June 2014 issue of The PCB Magazine.
Suggested Items
OTC Markets Group Welcomes Firan Technology Group Corporation to OTCQX
10/17/2024 | Globe NewswireOTC Markets Group Inc., operator of regulated markets for trading 12,000 U.S. and international securities, announced Firan Technology Group Corporation, an aerospace and defence electronics product and subsystem supplier, has qualified to trade on the OTCQX® Best Market. Firan Technology Group Corporation upgraded to OTCQX from the Pink® market.
Calumet Electronics Leads US Organic Substrate Technology Innovation with KLA Corporation
10/17/2024 | Calumet ElectronicsCalumet Electronics of Michigan today announced it is pioneering organic substrate technology in the United States in collaboration with KLA Corporation, which also has a Michigan headquarters.
Altair Drives Aerospace Innovation at Motivo
10/17/2024 | AltairAltair, a global leader in computational intelligence, is proud to announce its collaboration with Motivo, a product engineering firm focused on translating forward-thinking visions into best-in-class products for clients in the mobility, energy, agriculture technology, and aerospace sectors. Motivo utilizes Altair’s unique combination of engineering consulting and software to drive innovation for organizations in the aerospace industry.
BOOK EXCERPT: The Printed Circuit Designer’s Guide to... DFM Essentials, Introduction
10/16/2024 | I-Connect007 Editorial TeamDesign for Manufacturing (DFM) is defined as the practice of designing printed circuit boards that meet not only the capabilities of the customer’s assembly manufacturing process, but also the capabilities of the board fabrication process to provide the highest reliability at the lowest possible cost.
Marcy’s Musings: Destination Metallization
10/17/2024 | Marcy LaRont -- Column: Marcy's MusingsTo reach your intended destination, you must have some form of pathway or route upon which to travel. It is much the same with the metallized traces and features on a printed circuit board. They are how electrical signals and power are carried from one point to another in an electronic device. Copper is the most prevalent metal conductor, but other metals are also used to a lesser degree, including gold, silver, tin, and palladium.