The A to Z of PCB Design Terms

The A to Z of PCB Design Terms


Printed circuit boards are the basis of electronic sub-assemblies. They are electronic circuits, often complex, with the thin layers of tracking printed onto thin, non-conductive layers. Components such as resistors, capacitors, semi-conductors, mounts for processing chips and memory chips, etc. are added in subsequent operations. Modern electronic equipment demands a very high tracking density which is achieved in “multilayers” or “multilayer boards (MLBs)” where multiple conductive layers (cores) are separated by insulating layers called prepregs. A further development of this technique is the HDI (high density interconnect) board.Get more news about Pcb Board Roller Leveller,you can vist our website!

Processing is a complicated set of individual operations and will vary to produce any specific design of board. Over 40 activity stages may be used in the production of boards, although not all of them will be used for any board design.

In general, the base materials are phenolic paper, epoxy paper or epoxy glass laminates. For special applications, ceramic materials, flexible or flex-rigid materials are used. The base material is clad with copper on one or both sides, with a thickness usually between 5 and 105 μm, depending on design requirements. Metals other than copper may be occasionally used for specific applications, such as aerospace. Examples of the construction of PCBs are shown in Figure 2.27.

The cores are laminated with preregs, with copper foil outer layers. The cores and the copper foil are patterned and processes in similar ways, and some stages may be repeated to complete a complex multilayer board.
Is this article we take you through the A to Z of PCB terms, which covers nearly every single PCB design term you will ever need. Beware… there are over 100 PCB design terms in this article, so if you want a PDF version to read later contact us.

Vee section of laminate where two tracks are joined at an acute angle. In the days of old with dip processing etchent could remain trapped under the resist.

Gerber files consist of instructions to take specific shaped “pens” and draw particular lines or curves with them. The “pens” are called apertures. In the old days, they were actual templates which would be placed in front of a light, the light switched on, and wherever the light passed through the shape, it would be recorded on the film. These days, it’s all done by a sort of high-end laser printer, but the model of an aperture and a path to sweep it along is still used. Most apertures are simple geometric shapes such as circles and squares.