Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1520956
MAY 2024 I PCB007 MAGAZINE 13 to adopt it. But the qualifications are a chal- lenge. For others, the very traditional mind- set of the industry is a barrier. We like to hang on to the same specs for 30 years. Matties: Regarding the qualifications, since the customer has to approve new materi- als, the fabricator needs to show some sub- stantial gain to undertake that endeavor. The board winds up with solder mask either way. Absolutely, and the fabricator is the wrong person to push this change. PCB shops are job shops. ey build the spec, they don't define them. It is the people who define the specs who need to see what the trade space is, who can then see what they gain by going in this direc- tion. Lithography is crisp and clean. ere is more variation in inkjet, but does it really mat- ter? With 3D printing, you have excellent reg- istration and a better profile for assembly. It is a different animal. When I talk to OEMs, I tell them, "You can change the thickness. You can have better dielectric and control of electrical properties, potentially some mechanical benefits depend- ing on how they're set up for assembly, and things like that. If OEMs understood, the tech- nology would be adopted much more quickly. Matties: Alex, who's driving this? Will it be a customer, the OEM that comes in and tells the fabricator they want additive? Or will it be the technology itself that drives it? You need a large corporate player or a consor- tium of players driving it who are really com- mitted to making it work for it to become more pervasive within PCB manufacturing. ere needs to be a concerted effort and broader interest in it happening. I can say that every major OEM I have worked with in the past two years has adopted solder mask 3D printing technology. ey do it for various reasons, whether it's thickness con- trol, the ability to have a very dynamic service condition to put extra mask in some places and make things really flat, or just willingness to take the risk to avoid the traditional process. With conventional coating processes, the flat- ness is a reflection of the underlying topogra- phy of the surface, so you're just conforming. With 3D printing, you can fill and compensate as well. You can put extra mask in certain places, and the same can be true with dielectric mate- rials. You can build dielectrics this way. ere is probably the most industry support right now for inkjet solder masks as an additive process. Matties: From the supplier side, who advocates for this technology the most? So far, the push is primarily from the equipment manufac- turers. e ink manufactur- ers have to adopt it because it's starting to get traction. ey've been holding back on it because they sell less ink. e PCB shops look and see 100 qualifications they have to do, which doesn't excite them. What excites them is the simplicity of the mask pro- cess. In some PCB shops, if they didn't have to do the qual- ifications, they'd be thrilled