The necessity of printed circuit board (PCB) design has driven the continuous development of the direct plating process over the past several years. This evolution has been driven by the miniaturization of components, from through-hole components to surface-mounted devices. As a result, PCB designs have adapted to accommodate more pins and smaller components. This has led to an increase in PCB layers, thicker circuit boards, and smaller via holes. To address high aspect ratio challenges, production line specifications must incorporate improvements in solution movement and micro-hole exchange, such as using ultrasonic technology to quickly wet holes and remove bubbles. Furthermore, the ability of air knives and dryers to effectively dry thick circuits and small holes on the board is critical.
Since then, PCB designers have advanced to the next stage, where issues like blind hole starvation, pin count, and ball grid density now exceed the available board surface for drilling and routing. As Ball Grid Array (BGA) packages shift from 1.27mm to 1.00mm grids and Chip Scale Packages (CSP) move from 0.80mm to 0.64mm grids, micro-blind vias have become an essential tool for designers to address the challenges posed by HDI (High-Density Interconnect) technology.
In 1997, feature phones began mass production using a 1 + N + 1 design, which incorporated micro-blind holes within overlapping core layers. As mobile phone sales grew, pre-etched windows and a combination of CO2 lasers, UV, UV-YAG, and UV-CO2 lasers were used to form micro-blind vias. With the use of micro-blind vias, designers could route beneath the blind vias, redistributing more pin grids without increasing the number of layers. HDI technology is now widely applied in three main platforms: miniaturized products, high-end packaging, and high-performance electronics. Miniaturization in mobile phone design remains one of the most productive applications of this technology.
With the rapid advancement of electronics technology, PCB manufacturers who understand emerging trends in PCB technology can actively develop innovative production techniques to navigate the highly competitive PCB industry. As the world’s largest producer of PCB boards, Shenzhen PCB manufacturers’ production and processing capabilities play a crucial role in the development of the electronics industry. PCB manufacturers must continually stay aware of technological advancements. Below are some insights into the ongoing development of PCB manufacturing and processing technologies:
1. Development of Component Embedding Technology
Component embedding technology marks a significant change in the integration of PCB functional circuits. The incorporation of semiconductor devices (known as active components) and electronic components (known as passive components) into the inner layers of PCBs has begun. However, for manufacturers to develop this technology, several challenges must be addressed, including analog design methods, production techniques, and quality inspection. Ensuring reliability is a top priority. PCB factories must increase their investment in resources such as design, equipment, testing, and simulation to maintain a strong competitive edge.
2. HDI Technology Remains a Key Development Direction
HDI technology has been instrumental in advancing mobile phone development, driving the evolution of information processing, and controlling the core frequency functions of LSI and CSP chips (packages). It has also accelerated the development of template substrates for PCB packaging and promoted the growth of PCB technology. Consequently, PCB manufacturers must innovate along the path of HDI technology. HDI represents the cutting-edge technology of modern PCBs, bringing thinner traces and smaller openings to the boards. The application of HDI multilayer substrates in terminal electronics—such as mobile phones—serves as a model for frontier development in HDI technology. In mobile phones, micro-wires (50μm to 75μm, trace width/spacing) on the PCB motherboard have become mainstream. Additionally, the conductive layers and substrate thicknesses continue to decrease.
Looking ahead, Shen Qingfang mentioned that technologies like 5G, biometrics, or pressure-sensitive autonomous driving may be applied to Pengding Holdings’ circuit boards, or to cloud storage, computing, and base stations. This staged development will eventually lead to the creation of smart factories.
If you have any questions about PCB and PCBA, please contact me at info@wellcircuits.com
