Aluminums PCBs
Aluminum PCBs
About Aluminum PCB
Aluminum PCB is also named as metal clad (MCPCB) PCB, Aluminum PCB is a unique metal-based copper-clad laminate. Aluminum PCB has good thermal conductivity, electrical insulation, and mechanical processing properties. Comparing with the traditional FR-4, the Aluminum PCB adopts the same thickness and the same line width, the Aluminum PCB can carry a higher current, withstand voltage of the Aluminum PCB can support high voltage up to 4500V, and the thermal conductivity is greater than 2.0.
Advantages of Aluminum PCBs
Environmentally Friendly
Aluminum panels are easy to assemble and align with the requirements of mass production, while aluminum metal is non-toxic and recyclable.
Good Heat Dissipation Performance
Good Heat dissipation: High temperatures can severely damage electronic components on the circuit boards, so using a material with an excellent heat dissipation feature is a popular solution. Aluminum metal can dispatch heat away during the working hours of the PCBA, minimizing the harmful effect on the circuit board.
High Durability
Aluminum metal own features of both rugged and durable; it is ideal for daily use during manufacturing, freight, and packaging.
Lightweight
Aluminum has good durability and is a desirable lightweight metal. Aluminum can add strength and elasticity to a product without adding any extra mass.
Better mechanical durability
It can replace the fragile ceramic substrate.
Applications for Aluminum PCBs
Consumer Electronics
Aluminum PCBs are popular in power/audio equipment applications, including Input, output amplifiers, balanced amplifiers, preamplifiers, and power amplifiers. The computer power supply is another volume application.
Telecom industry
Various communication power supplies, switching regulators, DC/AC converters, SW regulators, and filtering electrical equipment.
Industrial control
Aluminum PCBs are popular in motor drive design for many automated machines.
Automotive Electronics
Electronic igniter and rectifier bridge were used on the vehicle.
Lighting
Lighting is one of the largest application areas of Aluminum PCBs. With the promotion of energy-saving lamps, various energy-saving and gorgeous LED lamps are very popular in the market, and aluminum substrates used in LED lighting have also begun to be applied on a large scale.
Our Aluminum PCB
Layers： 4L Thickness： 1.6mm
Out Layer Copper Thickness： 0.5 OZ
Inner Layer Copper Thickness： 0.5 OZ
Min Hole Size: 0.2mm Min Line Width: 3mil
Surface Finish: ENIG
Application: LED Lighting
Layers: 2L Thickness: 1.2mm
Out Layer Copper Thickness: 0.5 OZ
Inner Layer Copper Thickness: 0.5 OZ
Min Hole Size: 0.2mm Min Line Width: 3mil
Surface Finish: OSP
Application: LED Lighting
Layers:4 L Thickness: 1.6mm
Out Layer Copper Thickness: 0.5 OZ
Inner Layer Copper Thickness: 0.5 OZ
Min hole size: 0.2mm Min Line Width: 3mil
Surface Finish: HASL
Application: Power Supply
What are the difficulties of aluminum PCBs manufacturing?
Drilling
No burrs are allowed on the edge of the hole drilling; otherwise, it will affect the withstand voltage test.
Clean surface
The aluminum base surface is not allowed to be scratched in the entire aluminum substrate production process. Touching by hand or certain chemicals will cause the surface to be discolored and blackened.
High voltage test
Aluminum PCBs of the communication power supply require a 100% high-voltage test. Dirt, holes, and burrs on the edge of the aluminum base, the line saw teeth, or bumps on any insulating layer will cause fire and leakage in the high-voltage test.
Eashub’s capability on Aluminum PCBs
Feature | Capability |
Quality Grade | Standard IPC 2, IPC 3 |
Number of Layers | 4 – 24 layers |
Material | Aluminum core (Domestic 1060), Copper core, FR4 covering |
Max Board Size | Max 450mm x 600mm |
Final Board Thickness | 0.4mm – 5.0mm |
Copper Thickness | 0.5oz – 10.0oz |
Min Tracing/Spacing | 4mil/4mil |
Min Drilling Hole Diameter | 6mil |
Solder Mask Color | Green,Matte Green, Yellow, White, Blue, Purple,Black, Matte Black, Red |
Silkscreen Color | White, Black |
Surface Treatment | Immersion gold, OSP, Hard Gold, Immersion Sliver, Enepig |
The architecture of Aluminum PCBs
Circuit Layer
The circuit layer generally uses electrolytic copper foil etched to form a printed circuit，where make electronic assembly and component connection available. Comparing with the traditional FR-4 material, with the same thickness and line width, the aluminum substrate can withstand a higher current.
Dielectric Layer
The dielectric layer is the core layer of the aluminum substrate, which mainly plays the functions of bonding, insulation, and heat conduction. The aluminum base dielectric layer is the largest thermal barrier in the structures. The better thermal conductivity performance of the dielectric layer, the more diffusion of heat that generating during power on, and the more conducive to reducing the operating temperature of the circuits, thereby achieving the purpose of increasing the power load of the circuits, reducing the size, extended the lifecycle, and enhancing the power output.
Base Layer
The metal used for the insulating metal substrate is related to thermal conductivity, the thermal expansion coefficient, hardness, weight, surface state,, strength, and cost of the metal substrate.
Generally speaking, considering cost and technical performance, the aluminum substrate is an ideal choice for PCB designers. The candidate aluminum plates are 6061, 5052, 1060, and so on. but if customers have special requirements like higher thermal conductivity, mechanical properties, electrical properties, copper plates, etc, stainless steel plates, iron plates, and silicon steel plates can be considered.
Manufacturing processes of Aluminum PCB
What kind of aluminum material is used for Aluminum PCBs?
The commonly used aluminum alloy for aluminum PCBs mainly has 1000 series, 5000 series, and 6000 series. The classical features of those series of aluminum alloy are as the below:
1000 series represent 1050, 1060, 1070, 1000 series aluminum alloy is also called a pure aluminum plate. Among all series, 1000 has the most aluminum content, and the purity is 99.00%+. Since it does not contain any other elements, the production process is quite simple, and the price is competitive. It is the most popular used series of aluminum alloys in traditional industries. Most of the transactions in the market are 1050 and 1060 series.
5000 series have 5052, 5005, 5083, and 5A05. 5000 series aluminum alloy is a classic and commonly used alloy aluminum plate. Its main additive element is magnesium, and magnesium element takes around 3-5% in the alloy. Therefore, it is also called aluminum magnesium alloy. Its main characteristics are low density, high tensile strength, and high elongation. In the same design, aluminum-magnesium alloys are lighter in weight than other series but can provide a better performance, so this alloy is often used in the aerospace industry. The processing method is casting and rolling, which belongs to the series of hot-rolled aluminum plates, and can be oxidized for deep processing.
6000 series represents 6061, and the main added elements are magnesium and silicon. Suitable for scenarios requiring oxidation resistance and high corrosion. It is a cold-treated aluminum forging metal with good usability, excellent interface, easy coating, and good machinability. Typical uses of 6061 aluminum: connectors, aircraft parts, camera parts, couplers, etc.
