High-frequency PCB is a Special circuit board with higher electromagnetic frequencies, usually, high-frequency boards can be defined as printed circuit boards with frequencies above 1GHz.
Its physical properties, features, and technical parameters are very demanding, and high-frequency PCBs usually have the following advantages
High efficiency
The dielectric constant of high-frequency circuits is small, so the consumption is naturally smaller than on other PCBs. Under such excellent congenital conditions, induction heating technology at the forefront of scientific and technological development can also meet the needs of target heating, thus making high-frequency circuit boards very efficient.
Great transmission speed
Theoretically,The propagation delay of a wire increases proportionally to the square root of the dielectric field number of its surrounding medium. That is, the smaller the number of dielectric fields, the smaller the propagation delay, the faster the signal propagation speed, and the high frequency board has a good dielectric coefficient.
Flexibility
High-frequency PCB board is widely used in various industries that require precision metal material heating treatment. In this area, not only components laying at different depths can be heated, but also surface or deep levels can be heated based on their characteristics; centralized or decentralized heating methods can be easily achieved.
Strong tolerance
High-frequency circuit boards can be well adapted to humid and high-temperature environments.
The largest application field of high-frequency PCB is the field that requires fast transmission of high-frequency signals, mainly in the communication industry or industries with strong communication function requirements.
Automotive radar
GPS/Navigation
Satellite communication
MmWave communications
Communication radar
RF tag
Microwave communication
Layers: 16L Thickness: 1.6mm
Out Layer Copper Thickness: H OZ
Inner Layer Copper Thickness: H OZ
Min Hole Size: 0.15mm Min Line Width: 3 mil
Surface Finish: ENIG
Application: Telecom Relay
Layers: 10 L Thickness: 1.6mm
Out Layer Copper Thickness: 1 OZ
Inner Layer Copper Thickness: 1 OZ
Min Hole Size: 0.3mm Min Line Width: 4mil
Surface Finish: ENIG
Application: Industrial Control
Layers: 2 L Thickness: 1.6mm
Out Layer Copper Thickness: 1 OZ
Inner Layer Copper Thickness: 1 OZ
Min Hole Size: 0.3mm Min Line Width/: 5mil
Surface Finish: ENIG
Application: Industrial Control
Drilling Speed Control
the base material is soft, the number of stacked boards for drilling should be less, and a suitable slow drilling speed can ensure consistent quality.
Printed solder mask
After the high-frequency board is etched, do not use a roller brush to grind the board before printing the green oil for the solder mask, and avoid damaging the substrate. We proposed to use chemical methods for surface treatment. After printing the solder mask, the circuit and the copper surface are uniforms, and there is no oxide layer.
Hot air leveling
According to the inherent features of fluororesin, rapid heating on high-frequency PCBs should be avoided. Preheat treatment at 150°C for about 30 minutes, then spray the tin immediately. The temperature of the tin cylinder should not exceed 245°C. Otherwise, the adhesion of the isolated pad will be affected.
Milling shape
Fluorine resin is soft, and ordinary milling cutters have many burrs and are not flat. It is necessary to use suitable special milling cutters.
Storage direction
PCBs cannot be placed vertically, Do not touch the circuit graphics on the board. The whole process prevents scratches and scratches. Scratches, pinholes, indentations, and pits on the line will affect signal transmission.
Etching standard
Strictly control side erosion, sawtooth, notch, line width tolerance is strictly controlled + 0.02mm.
Chemical immersion
The pretreatment of chemical immersion copper is a difficult and key step in manufacturing high-frequency PCBs. The plasma (plasma) and chemical methods are the most efficient methods.
Feature | Capability |
Quality Grade | Standard IPC2, IPC 3 |
Number of Layers | 2 – 24 layers |
Material | RO3003, RO3010, RO4003C,RO4350B,RT5880 |
Max Board Size | Max 450mm x 600mm |
Final Board Thickness | 0.4mm – 5.0mm |
Copper Thickness | 0.5oz – 2.0oz |
Min Tracing/Spacing | 2mil/2mil |
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 Silver, Enepig |
Testing | Fly Probe Testing (Free) and A.O.I. testing |
Impedance Tolerance | ±10% |
Lead Time | 2 – 28days |
The performance of high-frequency PCBs used in wireless or other high-frequency applications depends on the construction base material. Using FR4 material with proper lamination has improved dielectric properties in many applications. Common materials used for high-frequency boards are listed below:
Rogers 4350B HF
ISOLA IS620 electronic fiberglass
Taconic RF-35 Ceramic
Taconic TLX
Rogers RO3001
Rogers RO3003
Yalong 85N
Choosing a material must keep a balance between meeting technical requirements and total cost.
Electrical features
low loss, low dispersion, good Dk/Df parameters, small tolerance of material thickness, low coefficient of variation with frequency and glue content (good impedance control). The speed of high-speed digital circuits on the top factors for PCB selection. The higher the circuit transfer speed, the smaller the Df value should be. Circuit boards with medium and low loss profiles are applied on 10Gb/s digital circuits; boards with lower loss are used for 25Gb/s digital circuits; boards with ultra-low loss will adapt to faster high-speed circuits with a rate of 50Gb/s or higher.
From the material perspective, Df:
Manufacturability
Such as multiple lamination performance, temperature performance, etc., CAF/heat resistance and mechanical toughness (stickiness) (good reliability), fire rating;
Material lead time
The lead time of many high-frequency sheets is much longer, even a few months; except for the conventional high-frequency sheet RO4350, which is in stock, others have to be ordered in advance
Cost
High-frequency applications in different industries have different material requirements for the plateamong the above factors