PCB or Printed circuit baord is the main part of an electronic circuit and projects. Boards are used to provide mechanical and physical support to electronic devices and connected components on boards. PCB boards made with the use of non-substrate materials over the substrate the copper layers are traced. PCB boards have different numbers of layers single-sided, double-sided, or multiple layers based on projects.
There are different types of PCB boards used such as a single layer, rigid PCB, Rigid-flex PCB, etc. All these types of PCBs are discussed here. So let’s get started.
- The main types of PCB boards are listed here
- Single-Sided PCBs
- Double-Sided PCBs
- Multilayer PCBs
- Rigid PCBs
- Flex PCBs
- Rigid-Flex PCBs
Single-Sided PCBs
The single-sided board is a basic type of PCB board. It comes with a single layer of conductive layer over the substrate. The components used for projects are connected on one side of the boards. These boards come with conductive layers and conductive paths do not intersect or overlap.
These boards are best for low-density projects and structures. Single-sided boards are used in power supplies, LED lights, timing circuits, etc.
The main features of single-side boards are
- They are low-cost and can easily be manufactured.
- They are best for low-density designs.
- They can easily repair and design
Double Sided PCBs
Double-sided boards come with two sides of substrate materials having conductive layers on both sides. On these boards components can connected on both sides, for component connection through the hole and SMT technology used.
Through the hole method insert components pin through pre-drilled holes on boards. That soldered to pads on the reverse side.
In the SMT process components are directly connected to the surface of the baord.
The main benefit of these boards is that through the use of SMT, we can connect more components as compared to through whole process.
These boards are used for mobile phones, power monitoring circuits, amplifier circuits, etc
Multi-Layer PCBs
Multilayer PCB boards come with more than 2 copper layers. Normally boards that have a minimum of 3 layers are called multilayer boards. The structure of these boards is like a sandwich and different double-sided conductive layers come with the same insulating layers sheets. These are bonded and laminated through high pressure and temperature applied to cover the gaps and make complete PCBA assembly.
These boards are part of computers, laptops, phones, medical devices, and GPS trackers.
Rigid PCB
Rigid PCBs are made with the use of solid substrate materials that help boards avoid twisting. Normally commonly used these boards are motherboards. Rigid boards are used for different manufacturing projects. They are the main part of projects where constant structure is needed.
These boards come with multiple layers such as substrate layers, copper layers solid masks, and silkscreen layers that are connected through the application of heat. These boards can be in single, double, or multiple layers configuration based on project demand.
These boards are used for GPS systems, computers, laptops, mobile phones, CAT scans, etc
Flex PCBs
Flexible boards are made with the use of different PCb boards and components are connected to a substrate of flexible materials. These boards are made with polyimide, PEEK, or transparent conductive polyester film. These boards are also called flex boards, or flex circuits. They are made through the use of the same components that are used for rigid PCBs. The main difference between rigid and flexible boards is their applications. These boards also come in single-sided, double-sided, and multilayer configurations.
Their common use is organic light emitting diode (OLED), LCD, flex solar cells, and automotive industries.
High-Frequency PCBs
These boards are used for projects where a frequency range of 500MHz to 2GHz is involved. Their common uses are communication systems, microwave PCBs, microstrip PCBs, etc.
Aluminum backed PCBs
These boards are part of high power uses since aluminum has features for heat dissipation. Aluminum-backed boards are used due to their high value of rigidness and low value of thermal expansion, and best used for projects where high mechanical tolerance is involved. They are also used for LEDs and power supplies.
Rigid-Flex PCBs
Rigid-flex PCB boards are hybrid boards that are made with a combination of both flexible and rigid materials. Their design is such that has a fixed and flexible design. The flexible part of the board is used for the connection of rigid board and provides narrow conductor lines that use less area so they are made in smaller designs. The use of flexible boards makes less use of connectors, there are large sizes and heavyweight, and make rigid-flex boards lightweight.
The design of these boards is complicated so they are made in 3d designs and help the board to be folded or twisted to make the required pattern for projects.
Engineering Requirements in PCB Manufacturing
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