Metal PCB Board

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Metal PCB boards, sometimes referred to as thermal PCBs or metal back PCBs, are a kind of PCB utilized for the board's heat dissipation that are based on metal components.

Based on the use of metal in the heat dissipation area, metal PCB boards represent a subgroup of the PCB family. Multi-layer printed circuit boards are made up of three parts: copper foil, metal plate, and insulation layer (sometimes referred to as the IMS layer). Superior mechanical strength, outstanding processing efficiency, efficient heat dissipation, strong magnetic conductivity, and elevated tensile modulus are all present.

This result was attained by a variety of techniques, including the employment of conductive and non-conductive materials. The substrate of the majority of metal PCB boards is made of copper or aluminum, or a mix of copper and aluminum or other metal alloys.

The advantages of metal PCB boards

1. Metal PCB materials provide significantly better thermal expansion and dimensional stability than typical circuit board materials. Power density, electromagnetic shielding, and capacitance coupling can all be enhanced via metal core PCB designs.

2. To enhance the thermal performance of metal PCB prototypes, hot through holes are frequently inserted, even though they are not absolutely necessary. Because copper has a superior thermal performance than aluminum, engineers typically select copper metal PCB LEDs when high-power LED lighting is needed for compact enclosures.

3. The technology of insulated metal substrates works very well when a lot of heat needs to be evacuated. Engineers and designers frequently choose metal PCB boards because of their numerous benefits over FR4 PCBs.

4. To lessen thermal resistance, they can use dielectric polymer layers with excellent heat conductivity. Eight to nine times as quickly as FR4 PCB, they transfer heat. They can increase the efficiency and longevity of heating components by dissipating heat and lowering their temperature.

Comparing the metal PCB with the FR4 PCB

1) Thermal conductivity: The thermal conductivity of FR4 is low. It is approximately 0.3W. The heat conductivity of metal circuit boards is greater. The values in this range are 1.0W to 4.0W. Generally speaking, the value is about 2.0W.

2) Plated through holes: These are commonly used in FR4 PCBs. You cannot, however, plate through holes for a 1-layer PCB in an MCPCB. This is due to the fact that most of its parts are surface-mounted.

3) Heat release: To guarantee heat transfer, via holes are included in heat release for FR4 PCBs. Numerous processes have been added as drilling cycles have been extended. The ability to dissipate heat is a feature of metal PCB materials. removes procedures like electroplating, deposition, and drilling.

4) Solder mask: FR4 PCB solder masks often have dark colors (black, blue, red, and green). Usually, they are applied at the top and bottom. Solder masks for metal PCBs are typically white in color. These are exclusive to the top.

5) Thickness: FR4 PCBs can employ a variety of layers and material combinations and come in a range of thicknesses. The available substrate thickness and the dielectric thickness set a restriction on the thickness variation of metal PCB boards.

The metal substrate of a printed circuit board (PCB) is utilized for the board's heat dissipation region, and it is made of special substrate materials that are intended to increase the design's reliability. Circuit boards that employ a lot of LEDs and have cooling concerns frequently use metal PCBs.