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46 DESIGN007 MAGAZINE I OCTOBER 2025 C O N N ECT T H E D OTS by Mat t Stevenson, ASC Sunstone C ircuits Ultra high density interconnect (UHDI) PCBs are changing the game in designing for the reality of manufacturing. With both consumer and indus- trial electronic devices becoming more advanced, the demand for UHDI PCBs will grow. That means we're all likely to be designing more UHDI boards. UHDI advanced miniaturization technology chal- lenges designers with regard to both board thick- ness and footprint. Designers will face more vari- ables in every aspect of design creation. This is cer- tainly the case with drilling. Drilling is already one of the more complex and tricky steps in the manufacturing process. Design- ers must consider everything from board thickness and via size to material type to craft their designs Designing for the Reality of UHDI PCBs: Drilling and avoid problems during drilling that can drive up costs and increase the risk of board performance issues. With UHDI designs there is a lot for the designer to consider. A Quick Refresher on Sound Drilling Practice Drilling follows lamination in the multilayer PCB board manufacturing process. Once the lamination process is complete, we have a book—a stack of panels manufactured into a multilayer PCB. Panel preparation takes place before drilling can begin. After cleaning, we remove the flash around the edges to create a perfect rectangle that can be han- dled safely. To ensure drilling accuracy, we use a test coupon.