Ceramic PCBs deviate or dissociate from the traditional use of epoxy resin or fiberglass by using ceramic material as its substrate or base. This PCB includes an insulating and thin layer made up of a ceramic material that is integrated with different metal components so as to help in establishing the circuitry. This ceramic base material utilized in the ceramic PCBs like aluminum nitride, alumina, and beryllium oxide has great capabilities for heat conduction.
Due to its enhanced performance and great thermal abilities, the ceramic PCB serves as a great option for traditional PCBs found in several applications like LEDs, solar panel arrays, memory modules, multilayer interconnect boards, telecom devices, etc.
The most prominent of all the features of the ceramic PCB are its resistance to high temperature as well as its great electrical insulation. Also significant are other benefits such as its low dielectric loss and dielectric constant, great chemical stability, high thermal conductivity etc.
Ceramic PCB Types
High-temperature ceramic PCBs
People really love working with ceramic PCBs of high temperatures. This is because they have what it takes to withstand as well as function in any high-temperature environment. These PCBs are referred to as the HTCC circuits or high temperature co-fired ceramic circuits. Also, HTCC PCBs are made from raw materials that are mixed with adhesives, solvents, lubricants, aluminum oxide, as well as plasticizers.
Low Temperature Ceramic PCBs
Low temperature co-fired ceramic PCBs provide special benefits compared to the remaining ceramic PCB types. In contrast to the HTCC, the manufacturing of these PCBs are done through the combination of crystal glass with adhesive substrates present on a sheet metal that makes use of gold paste. Then, the circuit board that results is cut, laminated, and then placed in the gaseous oven at a temperature of about 900 degrees.
One important benefit of the LTCC PCB is their better shrink tolerance as well as reduced warpage when drawn in comparison with HTCC as well as other types of ceramic circuit boards. Also,. This will translate into an enhanced thermal conductivity and mechanical strength.
Particularly, LTCC PCBs are beneficial for applications that involve heat dissipation products because they provide better thermal advantages.
Thick film Ceramic PCBs
This type of ceramic PCBs features a conductor layer that can possess a thickness surpassing 10 microns. However, it doesn’t surpass 13 microns. For the ceramic PCBs, they have an adorned surface with a layer conductor which is imprinted meticulously making use of precious metals such as gold or silver. This deals with the application of dielectric or gold plates on ceramic base materials, which is followed by the baking process within a temperature less than 1000 degrees Celsius.
Using this type of ceramic PCB is popular among many PCB manufacturers because of their extremely low cost for gold conductor pastes. Furthermore, another benefit of this ceramic PCB type over the traditional printed circuit boards has to do with their capability to protect the copper from any possible oxidation.
In addition, this feature permits the manufacturers of ceramic PCBs to integrate interchangeable semiconductors, conductors, resistors, and capacitors on a ceramic board.
