1.

PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARD

A printed circuit board (PCB) mechanically supports and electrically
connects electronic components using conductive tracks, pads and other features etched from
copper sheets laminated onto a non-conductive substrate. PCBs can be single sided (one
copper layer), double sided (two copper layers) or multi-layer (outer and inner layers). Multi-
layer PCBs allow for much higher component density. Conductors on different layers are
connected with plated-through holes called vias. Advanced PCBs may contain components -
capacitors, resistors or active devices - embedded in the substrate.

Fig 1.1: Part of a Sinclair ZX Spectrum computer board

FR-4 glass epoxy is the primary insulating substrate upon which the vast majority of rigid
PCBs are produced. A thin layer of copper foil is laminated to one or both sides of an FR-4
panel. Circuitry interconnections are etched into copper layers to produce printed circuit
boards. Complex circuits are produced in multiple layers.

Printed circuit boards are used in all but the simplest electronic products. Alternatives to
PCBs include wire wrap and point-to-point construction. PCBs require the additional design
effort to lay out the circuit, but manufacturing and assembly can be automated.
Manufacturing circuits with PCBs is cheaper and faster than with other wiring methods as
components are mounted and wired with one single part. Furthermore, operator wiring errors
are eliminated.

When the board has only copper connections and no embedded components, it is more
correctly called a printed wiring board (PWB) or etched wiring board. Although more
accurate, the term printed wiring board has fallen into disuse. A PCB populated with
electronic components is called a printed circuit assembly (PCA), printed circuit board
assembly or PCB assembly (PCBA). The IPC preferred term for assembled boards is circuit
card assembly (CCA), and for assembled backplanes it is backplane assemblies. The term
PCB is used informally both for bare and assembled boards.
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1.1 History
Development of the methods used in modern printed circuit boards started early in the 20th
century. In 1903, a German inventor, Albert Hanson, described flat foil conductors laminated
to an insulating board, in multiple layers. Thomas Edison experimented with chemical
methods of plating conductors onto linen paper in 1904. Arthur Berry in 1913 patented a
print-and-etch method in Britain, and in the United States Max Schoop obtained a patent to
flame-spray metal onto a board through a patterned mask. Charles Durcase in 1927 patented a
method of electroplating circuit patterns.

The Austrian engineer Paul Eisler invented the printed circuit as part of a radio set while
working in England around 1936. Around 1943 the USA began to use the technology on a
large scale to make proximity fuses for use in World War II. After the war, in 1948, the USA
released the invention for commercial use. Printed circuits did not become common place in
consumer electronics until the mid-1950s, after the Auto-Assembly process was developed by
the United States Army. At around the same time in Britain work along similar lines was
carried out by Geoffrey Dummer, then at the RRDE.

Fig 1.2: Hand drawn etched traces on a PCB

Before printed circuits (and for a while after their invention), point-to-point construction was
used. For prototypes, or small production runs, wire wrap or turret board can be more
efficient. Predating the printed circuit invention, and similar in spirit, was John Sargrove's
1936–1947 Electronic Circuit Making Equipment (ECME) which sprayed metal onto
a Bakelite plastic board. The ECME could produce 3 radios per minute.
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1.2 Design
Initially PCBs were designed manually by creating a photomask on a clear mylar sheet,
usually at two or four times the true size. Starting from the schematic diagram the component
pin pads were laid out on the mylar and then traces were routed to connect the pads. Rub-
ondry transfers of common component footprints increased efficiency. Traces were made
with self-adhesive tape. Pre-printed non-reproducing grids on the mylar assisted in layout. To
fabricate the board, the finished photomask was photolithographically reproduced onto
a photoresist coating on the blank copper-clad boards.

Fig 1.3: board

Fig 1.1 shows a board designed in 1967; the sweeping curves in the traces are
evidence of freehand design using self-adhesive tape.

Nowadays PCBs are designed with dedicated layout software, generally in the following
steps:

1. Schematic capture through an electronic design automation (EDA) tool.

2. Card dimensions and template are decided based on required circuitry and case of the
PCB.

3. The positions of the components and heat sinks are determined.

4. Layer stack of the PCB is decided, with one to tens of layers depending on
complexity. Ground and power planes are decided. A power plane is the counterpart to
a ground plane and behaves as an AC signal ground while providing DC power to the
circuits mounted on the PCB. Signal interconnections are traced on signal planes.
Signal planes can be on the outer as well as inner layers. For

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 optimal EMI performance high frequency signals are routed in internal layers between
power or ground planes.

5. Line impedance is determined using dielectric layer thickness, routing copper

thickness and trace-width. Trace separation is also taken into account in case of
differential signals. Microstrip, stripline or dual stripline can be used to route signals.

6. Components are placed. Thermal considerations and geometry are taken into
account. Vias and lands are marked.

7. Signal traces are routed. Electronic design automation tools usually create clearances
and connections in power and ground planes automatically.

8. Gerber files are generated for manufacturing.

1.3 Manufacturing
PCB manufacturing consists of many steps.

1.3.1 PCB CAM

Manufacturing starts from the PCB fabrication data generated by CAD. The Gerber or
Excellon files in the fabrication data are never used directly on the manufacturing equipment
but always read into the CAM (Computer Aided Manufacturing) software. CAM performs
the following functions.

1. Input of the Gerber data

2. Verification of the data; optionally DFM

3. Compensation for deviations in the manufacturing processes (e.g. scaling to

compensate for distortions during lamination)

4. Panelization

5. Output of the digital tools (copper patterns, solder resist image, legend image, drill
files, automated optical inspection data, electrical test files,...)

1.3.2 Panelization

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Panelization is a procedure whereby a number of PCBs are grouped for manufacturing onto a
larger board - the panel. Usually a panel consists of a single design but sometimes multiple
designs are mixed on a single panel. There are two types of panels: assembly panels - often
called arrays - and bare board manufacturing panels. The assemblers often mount components
on panels rather than single PCBs because this is efficient. [10] The bare board manufactures
always uses panels, not only for efficiency, but because of the requirements the plating
process. Thus a manufacturing panel can consist of a grouping of individual PCBs or of
arrays, depending on what must be delivered.

The panel is eventually broken apart into individual PCBs; this is called depaneling.
Separating the individual PCBs is frequently aided by drilling or routing perforations along
the boundaries of the individual circuits, much like a sheet of postage stamps. Another
method, which takes less space, is to cut V-shaped grooves across the full dimension of the
panel. The individual PCBs can then be broken apart along this line of weakness. Today
depaneling is often done by lasers which cut the board with no contact. Laser panelization
reduces stress on the fragile circuits.

1.3.3 Copper patterning

The first step is to replicate the pattern in the fabricator's CAM system on a protective mask
on the copper foil PCB layers. Subsequent etching removes the unwanted copper.
(Alternatively, a conductive ink can be ink-jetted on a blank (non-conductive) board. This
technique is also used in the manufacture of hybrid circuits.)

1. Silk screen printing uses etch-resistant inks to create the protective mask.

2. Photoengraving uses a photomask and developer to selectively remove a UV-sensitive

photoresist coating and thus create a photoresist mask. Direct imaging techniques are
sometimes used for high-resolution requirements. Experiments were made with
thermal resist.

3. PCB milling uses a two or three-axis mechanical milling system to mill away the
copper foil from the substrate. A PCB milling machine (referred to as a 'PCB
Prototyper') operates in a similar way to a plotter, receiving commands from the host
software that control the position of the milling head in the x, y, and (if relevant) z
axis.

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 4. Laser resist ablation Spray black paint onto copper clad laminate, place
into CNC laser plotter. The laser raster-scans the PCB and ablates (vaporizes) the
paint where no resist is wanted. (Note: laser copper ablation is rarely used and is
considered experimental)

5. The method chosen depends on the number of boards to be produced and the required
resolution.

1.3.4 Chemical Etching

Chemical etching is usually done with ammonium persulfate or ferric chloride. For PTH
(plated-through holes), additional steps of electroless deposition are done after the holes are
drilled, then copper is electroplated to build up the thickness, the boards are screened, and
plated with tin/lead. The tin/lead becomes the resist leaving the bare copper to be etched
away.

The simplest method, used for small-scale production and often by hobbyists, is immersion
etching, in which the board is submerged in etching solution such as ferric chloride.
Compared with methods used for mass production, the etching time is long. Heat and
agitation can be applied to the bath to speed the etching rate. In bubble etching, air is passed
through the etchant bath to agitate the solution and speed up etching. Splash etching uses a
motor-driven paddle to splash boards with etchant; the process has become commercially
obsolete since it is not as fast as spray etching. In spray etching, the etchant solution is
distributed over the boards by nozzles, and re circulated by pumps. Adjustment of the nozzle
pattern, flow rate, temperature, and etchant composition gives predictable control of etching
rates and high production rates.

As more copper is consumed from the boards, the etchant becomes saturated and less
effective; different etchants have different capacities for copper, with some as high as 150
grams of copper per litre of solution. In commercial use, etchants can be regenerated to
restore their activity, and the dissolved copper recovered and sold. Small-scale etching
requires attention to disposal of used etchant, which is corrosive and toxic due to its metal
content.

The etchant removes copper on all surfaces exposed by the resist. "Undercut" occurs when
etchant attacks the thin edge of copper under the resist; this can reduce conductor widths and

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cause open-circuits. Careful control of etch time is required to prevent undercut. Where
metallic plating is used as a resist, it can "overhang" which can cause short-circuits between
adjacent traces when closely spaced. Overhang can be removed by wire-brushing the board
after etching.

1.3.5 Drilling
Holes through a PCB are typically drilled with small-diameter drill bits made of solid
coated tungsten carbide. Coated tungsten carbide is recommended since many board
materials are very abrasive and drilling must be high RPM and high feed to be cost effective.
Drill bits must also remain sharp so as not to mar or tear the traces. Drilling with high-speed-
steel is simply not feasible since the drill bits will dull quickly and thus tear the copper and
ruin the boards. The drilling is performed by automated drilling machines with placement
controlled by a drill tape or drill file. These computer-generated files are also
called numerically controlled drill (NCD) files or "Excellon files". The drill file describes the
location and size of each drilled hole.

Holes may be made conductive, by electroplating or inserting metal eyelets (hollow), to

electrically and thermally connect board layers. Some conductive holes are intended for the
insertion of through-hole-component leads. Others, typically smaller and used to connect
board layers, are called vias.

When very small vias are required, drilling with mechanical bits is costly because of high
rates of wear and breakage. In this case, the vias may be laser drilled—evaporated by lasers.
Laser-drilled vias typically have an inferior surface finish inside the hole. These holes are
called micro vias.

It is also possible with controlled-depth drilling, laser drilling, or by pre-drilling the

individual sheets of the PCB before lamination, to produce holes that connect only some of
the copper layers, rather than passing through the entire board. These holes are called blind
vias when they connect an internal copper layer to an outer layer, or buried vias when they
connect two or more internal copper layers and no outer layers.

The hole walls for boards with two or more layers can be made conductive and then
electroplated with copper to form plated-through holes. These holes electrically connect the
conducting layers of the PCB. For multi-layer boards, those with three layers or more,

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drilling typically produces a smear of the high temperature decomposition products of
bonding agent in the laminate system. Before the holes can be plated through, this smear
must be removed by a chemical de-smear process, or by plasma-etch. The de-smear process
ensures that a good connection is made to the copper layers when the hole is plated through.
On high reliability boards a process called etch-back is performed chemically with a
potassium permanganate based etchant or plasma. The etch-back removes resin and the glass
fibers so that the copper layers extend into the hole and as the hole is plated become integral
with the deposited copper.

1.3.6 Plating and coating

PCBs are plated with solder, tin, or gold over nickel as a resist for etching away the unneeded
underlying copper.

After PCBs are etched and then rinsed with water, the solder mask is applied, and then any
exposed copper is coated with solder, nickel/gold, or some other anti-corrosion coating.

Matte solder is usually fused to provide a better bonding surface or stripped to bare copper.
Treatments, such as benzimidazolethiol, prevent surface oxidation of bare copper. The places
to which components will be mounted are typically plated, because untreated bare copper
oxidizes quickly, and therefore is not readily solderable. Traditionally, any exposed copper
was coated with solder by hot air solder levelling (HASL). The HASL finish prevents
oxidation from the underlying copper, thereby guaranteeing a solderable surface. This solder
was a tin-lead alloy, however new solder compounds are now used to achieve compliance
with the RoHS directive in the EU and US, which restricts the use of lead. One of these lead-
free compounds is SN100CL, made up of 99.3% tin, 0.7% copper, 0.05% nickel, and a
nominal of 60ppm germanium.

It is important to use solder compatible with both the PCB and the parts used. An example is
ball grid array (BGA) using tin-lead solder balls for connections losing their balls on bare
copper traces or using lead-free solder paste.

Other platings used are OSP (organic surface protectant), immersion silver (IAg), immersion
tin, electroless nickel with immersion gold coating (ENIG), electroless nickel electroless
palladium immersion gold (ENEPIG) and direct gold plating (over nickel). Edge connectors,
placed along one edge of some boards, are often nickel plated then gold plated. Another

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coating consideration is rapid diffusion of coating metal into Tin solder. Tin forms
intermetallics such as Cu5Sn6 and Ag3Cu that dissolve into the Tin liquidus or solidus
(@50C), stripping surface coating or leaving voids.

Electrochemical migration (ECM) is the growth of conductive metal filaments on or in a

printed circuit board (PCB) under the influence of a DC voltage bias. Silver, zinc, and
aluminum are known to grow whiskers under the influence of an electric field. Silver also
grows conducting surface paths in the presence of halide and other ions, making it a poor
choice for electronics use. Tin will grow "whiskers" due to tension in the plated surface. Tin-
Lead or solder plating also grows whiskers, only reduced by the percentage Tin replaced.
Reflow to melt solder or tin plate to relieve surface stress lowers whisker incidence. Another
coating issue is tin pest, the transformation of tin to a powdery allotrope at low temperature.

1.3.7 Legend printing

A legend is often printed on one or both sides of the PCB. It contains the component
designators, switch settings, test points and other indications helpful in assembling, testing
and servicing the circuit board. There are three methods to print the legend.

1. Silk screen printing epoxy ink was the established method. It was so common that
legend is often misnamed silk or silkscreen.

2. Liquid photo imaging is a more accurate method than screen printing.

3. Ink jet printing is new but increasingly used. Ink jet can print variable data such as a
text or bar code with a serial number.

1.3.8 Assembly
In assembly the bare board is populated with electronic components to form a
functional printed circuit assembly (PCA), sometimes called a "printed circuit board
assembly" (PCBA). In through-hole technology component leads are inserted in holes.
In surface-mount technology (SMT) the components are glued on pads or lands on the
surfaces of the PCB. In both component leads are then mechanically fixed and electrically
connected to the board by soldering.

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 Fig 1.4: PCB with test connection pads

There are a variety of soldering techniques used to attach components to a PCB. High volume
production is usually done with SMT placement machine and bulk wave soldering or reflow
ovens, but skilled technicians are able to solder very tiny parts (for instance 0201 packages
which are 0.02 in. by 0.01 in.) by hand under a microscope, using tweezers and a fine
tip soldering iron for small volume prototypes. Some parts may be extremely difficult to
solder by hand, such as BGA packages.

Often, through-hole and surface-mount construction must be combined in a single assembly

because some required components are available only in surface-mount packages, while
others are available only in through-hole packages. Another reason to use both methods is
that through-hole mounting can provide needed strength for components likely to endure
physical stress, while components that are expected to go untouched will take up less space
using surface-mount techniques.

After the board has been populated it may be tested in a variety of ways:

 While the power is off, visual inspection, automated optical

inspection. JEDEC guidelines for PCB component placement, soldering, and
inspection are commonly used to maintain quality control in this stage of PCB
manufacturing.

 While the power is off, analog signature analysis, power-off testing.

 While the power is on, in-circuit test, where physical measurements (for example,
voltage) can be done.

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  While the power is on, functional test, just checking if the PCB does what it had been
designed to do.

To facilitate these tests, PCBs may be designed with extra pads to make temporary
connections. Sometimes these pads must be isolated with resistors. The in-circuit test may
also exercise boundary scan test features of some components. In-circuit test systems may
also be used to program nonvolatile memory components on the board.

In boundary scan testing, test circuits integrated into various ICs on the board form temporary
connections between the PCB traces to test that the ICs are mounted correctly. Boundary scan
testing requires that all the ICs to be tested use a standard test configuration procedure, the
most common one being the Joint Test Action Group (JTAG) standard. The JTAG test
architecture provides a means to test interconnects between integrated circuits on a board
without using physical test probes. JTAG tool vendors provide various types of stimulus and
sophisticated algorithms, not only to detect the failing nets, but also to isolate the faults to
specific nets, devices, and pins.

When boards fail the test, technicians may desolder and replace failed components, a task
known as rework.

1.3.9 Protection and packaging

PCBs intended for extreme environments often have a conformal coating, which is applied by
dipping or spraying after the components have been soldered. The coat prevents corrosion
and leakage currents or shorting due to condensation. The earliest conformal coats were wax;
modern conformal coats are usually dips of dilute solutions of silicone rubber, polyurethane,
acrylic, or epoxy. Another technique for applying a conformal coating is for plastic to
be sputtered onto the PCB in a vacuum chamber. The chief disadvantage of conformal
coatings is that servicing of the board is rendered extremely difficult.

Many assembled PCBs are static sensitive, and therefore must be placed in antistatic
bags during transport. When handling these boards, the user must be grounded (earthed).
Improper handling techniques might transmit an accumulated static charge through the board,
damaging or destroying components. Even bare boards are sometimes static sensitive. Traces
have become so fine that it's quite possible to blow an etch off the board (or change its

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characteristics) with a static charge. This is especially true on non-traditional PCBs such
as MCMs and microwave PCBs.

1.4 Materials
Excluding exotic products using special materials or processes all printed circuit boards
manufactured today can be built using the following four materials:

1. Laminates

2. Copper-clad laminates

3. Resin impregnated B-stage cloth (Pre-preg)

4. Copper foil

1.4.1 Laminates
Laminates are manufactured by curing under pressure and temperature layers of cloth or
paper with thermoset resin to form an integral final piece of uniform thickness. The size can
be up to 4 by 8 feet (1.2 by 2.4 m) in width and length. Varying cloth weaves (threads per
inch or cm), cloth thickness, and resin percentage are used to achieve the desired final
thickness and dielectric characteristics. Available standard laminate thicknesses are listed
in Table 1:

Table 1
Standard laminate thickness per ANSI/IPC-D-275

IPC Laminat
Thickness Thickness IPC Laminate Thickness Thickness
e
in inches in millimeters Number in inches in millimeters
Number

L1 0.002 0.05 L9 0.028 0.70

L2 0.004 0.10 L10 0.035 0.90

L3 0.006 0.15 L11 0.043 1.10

L4 0.008 0.20 L12 0.055 1.40

L5 0.010 0.25 L13 0.059 1.50

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 L6 0.012 0.30 L14 0.075 1.90

L7 0.016 0.40 L15 0.090 2.30

L8 0.020 0.50 L16 0.122 3.10

The cloth or fiber material used, resin material, and the cloth to resin ratio determine the
laminate's type designation (FR-4, CEM-1, G-10, etc.) and therefore the characteristics of the
laminate produced. Important characteristics are the level to which the laminate is fire
retardant, the dielectric constant (er), the loss factor (tδ), the tensile strength, the shear
strength, the glass transition temperature (Tg), and the Z-axis expansion coefficient (how
much the thickness changes with temperature).

There are quite a few different dielectrics that can be chosen to provide different insulating
values depending on the requirements of the circuit. Some of these dielectrics are poly tetra
fluoro ethylene (Teflon), FR-4, FR-1, CEM-1 or CEM-3. Well known pre-preg materials used
in the PCB industry are FR-2 (phenolic cotton paper), FR-3 (cotton paper and epoxy), FR-
4 (woven glass and epoxy), FR-5 (woven glass and epoxy), FR-6 (matte glass and polyester),
G-10 (woven glass and epoxy), CEM-1 (cotton paper and epoxy), CEM-2 (cotton paper and
epoxy), CEM-3 (non-woven glass and epoxy), CEM-4 (woven glass and epoxy), CEM-5
(woven glass and polyester). Thermal expansion is an important consideration especially
with ball grid array (BGA) and naked die technologies, and glass fiber offers the best
dimensional stability.

FR-4 is by far the most common material used today. The board with copper on it is called
"copper-clad laminate".

With decreasing size of board features and increasing frequencies, small non homogeneities
like uneven distribution of fiberglass or other filler, thickness variations, and bubbles in the
resin matrix, and the associated local variations in the dielectric constant, are gaining
importance.

1.4.2 Common substrates

Often encountered materials:

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  FR-2 (Flame Resistant 2), phenolic paper or phenolic cotton paper, paper impregnated
with a phenol formaldehyde resin. Cheap, common in low-end consumer electronics
with single-sided boards. Electrical properties inferior to FR-4. Poor arc resistance.
Generally rated to 105 °C. Resin composition varies by supplier.

 FR-4 (Flame Resistant 4), a woven fiberglass cloth impregnated with an epoxy resin.
Low water absorption (up to about 0.15%), good insulation properties, good arc
resistance. Well-proven, properties well understood by manufacturers. Very common,
workhorse of the industry. Several grades with somewhat different properties are
available. Typically rated to 130 °C. Thin FR-4, about 0.1 mm, can be used for
bendable circuitboards. Many different grades exist, with varying parameters;
versions are with higher Tg, higher tracking resistance, etc.

 Aluminium, or metal core board, clad with thermally conductive thin dielectric - used
for parts requiring significant cooling - power switches, LEDs. Consists of usually
single, sometimes double layer thin circuitboard based on e.g. FR-4, laminated on an
aluminium sheetmetal, commonly 0.8, 1, 1.5, 2 or 3mm thick. The thicker laminates
sometimes come also with thicker copper metalization.

 Flexible substrates - can be a standalone copper-clad foil or can be laminated to a thin

stiffener, e.g. 50-130 µm

 Kapton, a polyimide foil. Used for flexible printed circuits, in this form
common in small form-factor consumer electronics or for flexible
interconnects. Resistant to high temperatures.

 Pyralux, a polyimide-fluoropolymer composite foil. Copper layer can

delaminate during soldering.

Less-often encountered materials:

 FR-1 (Flame Resistant 1), like FR-2, typically specified to 105 °C, some grades rated
to 130 °C. Room-temperature punchable. Similar to cardboard. Poor moisture
resistance. Low arc resistance.

 FR-3 (Flame Resistant 3), cotton paper impregnated with epoxy. Typically rated
to 105 °C.
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  FR-5 (Flame Resistant 5), woven fiberglass and epoxy, high strength at higher
temperatures, typically specified to 170 °C.

 FR-6 (Flame Resistant 6), matte glass and polyester

 G-10, woven glass and epoxy - high insulation resistance, low moisture absorption,
very high bond strength. Typically rated to 130 °C.

 G-11, woven glass and epoxy - high resistance to solvents, high flexural strength
retention at high temperatures. Typically rated to 170 °C.

 CEM-1, cotton paper and epoxy

 CEM-2, cotton paper and epoxy

 CEM-3, non-woven glass and epoxy

 CEM-4, woven glass and epoxy

 CEM-5, woven glass and polyester

 PTFE, pure - expensive, low dielectric loss, for high frequency applications, very low
moisture absorption (0.01%), mechanically soft. Difficult to laminate, rarely used in
multilayer applications.

 PTFE, ceramic filled - expensive, low dielectric loss, for high frequency applications.
Varying ceramics/PTFE ratio allows adjusting dielectric constant and thermal
expansion.

 RF-35, fiberglass-reinforced ceramics-filled PTFE. Relatively less expensive, good

mechanical properties, good high-frequency properties.

 Alumina, a ceramic. Hard, brittle, very expensive, very high performance, good
thermal conductivity.

 Polyimide, a high-temperature polymer. Expensive, high-performance. Higher water

absorption (0.4%). Can be used from cryogenic temperatures to over 260 °C.

1.4.3 Copper thickness

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Copper thickness of PCBs can be specified as units of length (in micrometers or mils) but is
often specified as weight of copper per area (in ounce per square foot) which is easier to
measure. One ounce per square foot is 1.344 mils or 34 micrometers thickness.

The printed circuit board industry defines heavy copper as layers exceeding three ounces of
copper, or approximately 0.0042 inches (4.2 mils, 105 μm) thick. PCB designers and
fabricators often use heavy copper when design and manufacturing circuit boards in order to
increase current-carrying capacity as well as resistance to thermal strains. Heavy copper
plated vias transfer heat to external heat sinks. IPC 2152 is a standard for determining
current-carrying capacity of printed circuit board traces.

On the common FR-4 substrates, 1 oz copper (35 µm) is the usual, most common thickness; 2
oz (70 µm) and 0.5 oz (18 µm) thickness is often an option. Less common are 12 and 105
µm, 9 µm is sometimes available on some substrates. Flexible substrates typically have
thinner metalization; 18 and 35 µm seem to be common, with 9 and 70 µm sometimes
available. Aluminium or metal-core boards for high power devices commonly use thicker
copper; 35 µm is usual but also 140 and 400 µm can be encountered.

1.5 Steps in PCB Circuit Board Manufacturing

Step 1: Film Generation

Films for all of the copper and solder mask layers are
made from photographically exposed mylar. We generate
these films from your design files, creating an exact (1:1)
film representation of your design. When Gerber files are
submitted, each individual Gerber file represents one
layer of the PCB.

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Step 2: Select Raw Material

Industry standard 0.059" thick FR-4 laminate copper clad

on two sides. Panels will be sized to accommodate many
boards.

Step 3: Drill Holes

Through holes required for your PCB design are created
from your submitted files, using NC drill machines and
carbide drill bits.

Step 4: Electroless Copper

In order for the through holes to electrically connect to
different layers of the PCB, a thin layer of copper is
chemically deposited into the through holes. This copper
will later be thickened through electrolytic copper plating
(step 6).

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Step 5: Apply Photo-resist and Image
To transfer the PCB design from the electronic CAD data
to the physical circuit board, we start by applying
photosensitive photo-resist to the panel,covering the entire
board area. Then the copper layer film image (step 1) is
placed over the board, a high intensity UV light source
exposes the uncovered portion of the photo-resist. Then
we chemically develop the board (remove the unexposed
photo-resist from the panel) creating the pads and traces.

Step 6: Pattern Plate

This step is an electrochemical process which builds

copper thickness into the holes and onto the surface of the
PCB. Once the copper thickness is built up on the
circuitry and in the holes, we plate and additional layer of
tin to the exposed surface. This tin will protect the plated
copper during the etching process (step 7) and be later
removed.

Step 7: Strip & Etch

This process takes place in multiple steps. The first is to

chemically remove (strip) the photo-resist from the panel.
Then the newly exposed copper is chemically removed
(etched) from the panel. The tin applied in step 6 protects
the desired copper circuitry from being etched. At this
point, the fundamental circuitry of the PCB is defined.
Finally, the protective layer of tin is chemically removed
(stripped) to expose the copper circuitry.

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Step 8: Soldermask

Next we coat the entire panel with a liquid soldermask

layer. Using films and high intensity UV light (similar to
step 5) we expose the solderable areas of the PCB. The
main function of the soldermask is to protect the majority
of the copper circuitry from oxidation, damage and
corrosion as well as maintain isolation of the circuits
during assembly.

Step 9: Nomenclature (silkscreen)

Next we print the reference designators, logos, and other

information contained in the electronic files onto the
panel. This process is very similar to an inkjet printing
process, but designed specifically for PCBs.

Step 10: Surface Finish Applied

The final surface finish is then applied to the panels. This

surface finish (tin / lead solder or immersion silver) is
used to protect the copper (solderable surfaces) from
oxidation as well as act as a site for soldering of
components to the PCB.

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Step 11: Fabrication

Last, but not least, we route the perimeter of the PCB

from the larger panel using NC equipment. The PCB is
now complete, and is quickly shipped off to you — our
happy customer!

20
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25
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27
 DO IT YOUR SELF
MOBILE CELLPHONE CHARGER USING 555 IC

DOORBELL-CONTROLLED PORCHLIGHT

SMOKE EXTRACTOR

28
FAN ON/OFF CONTROL BY LIGHT

REMOTE CONTROL CIRCUIT DIAGRAM

SIMPLE MAT ALARM SWITCH

29
FIRE ALARM USING THERMISTOR.

WIRELESS SWITCH

30
IR TRANSMITTER AND RECEIVER CIRCUIT

VOLTAGE BASED CONTROLLER FOR SWITCHES

STREET LIGHT CIRCUIT

31
SINGLE CHIP FM RADIO

DIGITAL STOP WATCH

HIGH & LOW VOLTAGE CUT-OFF WITH DELAY& ALARM

32
MOBILE INCOMING CALL INDICATOR

33
APPENDIX
 REFERENCES

1. Tavernier, Karel. "PCB Fabrication Data - A Guide". Retrieved 8 January 2015.

2. Kraig Mitzner, Complete PCB Design Using OrCad Capture and Layout, pages
443–446, Newnes, 2011 ISBN 0080549209.

3. Itshak Taff, Hai Benron. "Liquid Photo resists for Thermal Direct Imaging".
The Board Authority, October 1999.

4. R. S. Khandpur, Printed circuit boards: design, fabrication, assembly and testing, Tata-
McGraw Hill, 2005 ISBN 0-07-058814-7, pages 373–378.

5. Production Methods and Materials 3.1 General Printed Wiring Board Project Report –
Table of Contents, Design for the Environment (DfE), US EPA.

6. George Milad and Don Gudeczauskas. "Solder Joint Reliability of Gold Surface
Finishes (ENIG, ENEPIG and DIG) for PWB Assembled with Lead Free SAC Alloy."

7. IPC Publication IPC-TR-476A, "Electrochemical Migration: Electrically Induced

Failures in Printed Wiring Assemblies," Northbrook, IL, May 1997.

8. S.Zhan, M. H. Azarian and M. Pecht, "Reliability Issues of No-Clean Flux Technology

with Lead-free Solder Alloy for High Density Printed Circuit Boards", 38th
International Symposium on Microelectronics, pp. 367–375, Philadelphia, PA,
September 25–29, 2005.

9. Clyde F. Coombs Printed Circuits Handbook McGraw–Hill Professional, 2007 ISBN

0-07-146734-3, pages 45–19.

10. Ayob, M.; Kendall, G. (2008). "A Survey of Surface Mount Device Placement
Machine Optidmisation: Machine Classification". European Journal of Operational
Research 186 (3): 893–914. doi:10.1016/j.ejor.2007.03.042.

11. Ayob, M.; Kendall, G. (2005). "A Triple Objective Function with a Chebychev
Dynamic Pick-and-place Point Specification Approach to Optimise the Surface
Mount Placement Machine". European Journal of Operational Research 164 (3):
609–626.doi:10.1016/j.ejor.2003.09.034.
12. Borkes, Tom. "SMTA TechScan Compendium: 0201 Design, Assembly and
Process"(PDF). Surface Mount Technology Association. Retrieved 2010-01-11.

13. Shibu. Intro To Embedded Systems 1E. Tata McGraw-Hill. p. 293. ISBN 978-0-07-
014589-4.

14. Electronic Packaging:Solder Mounting Technologies in K.H. Buschow et al

(ed),Encyclopedia of Materials:Science and Technology, Elsevier, 2001 ISBN 0-08-
043152-6, pages 2708–2709.

15. "Design Standard for Rigid Printed Boards and Rigid Printed Board
Assemblies". IPC. September 1991. IPC-4101.

16. "Specification for Base Materials for Rigid and Multilayer Printed Boards" (IPC-
4101). ANSI/IPC. December 1997. ANSI/IPC-D-275.

17. Kraig Mitzner. "Complete PCB Design Using OrCad Capture and Layout". 2011.

18. Electronic Design Automation For Integrated Circuits Handbook, by Lavagno,

Martin, and Scheffer, ISBN 0-8493-3096-3 A survey of the field of EDA. The
above summary was derived, with permission, from Volume II, Chapter 19, Design
for Manufacturability in the Nanometer Era, by Nicola Dragone, Carlo Guardiani,
and Andrzej J. Strojwas.

19. Design for Manufacturability And Statistical Design: A Constructive Approach, by

Michael Orshansky, Sani Nassif, Duane Boning ISBN 0-387-30928-4.

20. Estimating Space ASICs Using SEER-IC/H, by Robert Cisneros, Tecolote

Research, Inc. (2008) Complete Presentation.