-
- News
- Books
Featured Books
- pcb007 Magazine
Latest Issues
Current IssueThe Growing Industry
In this issue of PCB007 Magazine, we talk with leading economic experts, advocacy specialists in Washington, D.C., and PCB company leadership to get a well-rounded picture of what’s happening in the industry today. Don’t miss it.
The Sustainability Issue
Sustainability is one of the most widely used terms in business today, especially for electronics and manufacturing but what does it mean to you? We explore the environmental, business, and economic impacts.
The Fabricator’s Guide to IPC APEX EXPO
This issue previews many of the important events taking place at this year's show and highlights some changes and opportunities. So, buckle up. We are counting down to IPC APEX EXPO 2024.
- Articles
Article Highlights
- Columns
Search Console
- Links
- Events
||| MENU - pcb007 Magazine
Standard of Excellence: LED and Metal-Backed Technology—Today and in the Future
May 25, 2016 | David Lackey, American Standard CircuitsEstimated reading time: 3 minutes
Probably one of the hottest, or should I say coolest, technologies today is LED. I would also venture to say it is one of the fastest growing as well. All you have to do is look around you can see evidence of this everywhere from holiday lights in your home and Jumbotrons at sports arenas, to highway and business signage. The lighting industry is now dominated by LED technology.
Our understanding of, and status as experts in LED technology did not come easy. As a matter of fact, it took a number of years before we were able to learn and process all of the basic facets of this technology. In this column, I’d like to share some of the things we have learned.
First, it is critical to work closely with your LED customers. You must have a complete understanding of the parameters of their end product in order to advise them on the best way to design the circuit board for maximum efficiency and heat dissipation. This means that you have to know exactly how much heat the end product is going to be exposed to, including how much the product itself will be producing. By knowing this you the fabricator can determine not only which material to use to fabricate the printed circuits, but also advise the designer on the basic construction of the PCB. I have seen a number of instances, for example, where by choosing the right thermal laminates we were able to avoid having a metal-backed heat dissipation shield completely.
Secondly, we learned that we have to work with our vendors—particularly our laminate vendors—to not only make sure that they have the right thermal products on the shelf today, but also to help them in the development of future new products. Right now, for example, my company has just UL-approved six different new thermal control laminates to be used on our LED, metal back, RF and heavy copper products. It is not only important to let our vendors know what our needs are and will be, it is as critically important to listen to them as well. After all they are the experts of their own products.
Speaking of vendors, we also worked very closely with our soldermask suppliers, seeking their expertise on the best black, and more importantly, white inks to use. This was not easy challenge since these products are seeing a lot of heat, which tends to affect the color of inks. We worked with our vendor on the challenges we had with white soldermask, which tends to turn yellow with heat. But I am glad to say that by working together this problem was solved to the point where we are now getting excellent results using white soldermask on our thermal products.
We are now at a point in our company where we are building literally thousands of LED PCBs every single day, most on them on a quick turn basis, which makes us one of the industry leaders in this technology. But like everything else worth doing we had to meet a lot of challenges to get there.
The key to our success in LED technology comes from working very closely with our customers to get a good understanding of what their end products will look like, and how they will have to perform once out in the field. By keeping an ongoing discourse with vendors, both parties can learn from one other and together, forge a true technology partnership to build the best PCBs possible.
Dave Lackey is vice president of business development at American Standard Circuits.
Suggested Items
Designer’s Notebook: What Designers Need to Know About Manufacturing, Part 2
04/24/2024 | Vern Solberg -- Column: Designer's NotebookThe printed circuit board (PCB) is the primary base element for providing the interconnect platform for mounting and electrically joining electronic components. When assessing PCB design complexity, first consider the component area and board area ratio. If the surface area for the component interface is restricted, it may justify adopting multilayer or multilayer sequential buildup (SBU) PCB fabrication to enable a more efficient sub-surface circuit interconnect.
Insulectro’s 'Storekeepers' Extend Their Welcome to Technology Village at IPC APEX EXPO
04/03/2024 | InsulectroInsulectro, the largest distributor of materials for use in the manufacture of PCBs and printed electronics, welcomes attendees to its TECHNOLOGY VILLAGE during this year’s IPC APEX EXPO at the Anaheim Convention Center, April 9-11, 2024.
ENNOVI Introduces a New Flexible Circuit Production Process for Low Voltage Connectivity in EV Battery Cell Contacting Systems
04/03/2024 | PRNewswireENNOVI, a mobility electrification solutions partner, introduces a more advanced and sustainable way of producing flexible circuits for low voltage signals in electric vehicle (EV) battery cell contacting systems.
Heavy Copper PCBs: Bridging the Gap Between Design and Fabrication, Part 1
04/01/2024 | Yash Sutariya, Saturn Electronics ServicesThey call me Sparky. This is due to my talent for getting shocked by a variety of voltages and because I cannot seem to keep my hands out of power control cabinets. While I do not have the time to throw the knife switch to the off position, that doesn’t stop me from sticking screwdrivers into the fuse boxes. In all honesty, I’m lucky to be alive. Fortunately, I also have a talent for building high-voltage heavy copper circuit boards. Since this is where I spend most of my time, I can guide you through some potential design for manufacturability (DFM) hazards you may encounter with heavy copper design.
Trouble in Your Tank: Supporting IC Substrates and Advanced Packaging, Part 5
03/19/2024 | Michael Carano -- Column: Trouble in Your TankDirect metallization systems based on conductive graphite or carbon dispersion are quickly gaining acceptance worldwide. Indeed, the environmental and productivity gains one can achieve with these processes are outstanding. In today’s highly competitive and litigious environment, direct metallization reduces costs associated with compliance, waste treatment, and legal issues related to chemical exposure. What makes these processes leaders in the direct metallization space?