IPC International Community magazine an association member publication
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94 I-CONNECT007 MAGAZINE I JANUARY 2026 I am also watching emerging technologies attempt to simplify this process, innovations like 3D printing and Ormet paste for creating simplified stacked vias. Who knows if and when these tech- nologies will fully mature to mass production stan- dards, but it is exciting to see the industry thinking differently to solve these physics problems. From an equipment perspective, the landscape is shifting. We see Asian equipment manufacturers coming online with significantly better support and quality than in the past; the risk gap has narrowed. However, the uncertainty around globalism and trade dynamics makes the next five years difficult to gauge. The challenge will be balancing the tech- nical need for these advanced tools against the geopolitical fog of where they come from. Technically, what do you see as the most difficult challenge(s) in PCB fabrication, HDI and UHDI manufacturing? It is the battle against the stacking of tolerances in a world of moving materials. We are reaching a point where the physics of the laminate is fighting the precision of the laser. The textbook definition of HDI is easy; the real- ity of 8N8 stacked vias is pain. It starts with perfect registration, but that is just the baseline. The real failure point arises from the cumulative result of each 10% tolerance, present with every single piece of equipment. Success is about forcing the phys- ics to cooperate: the lamination needs to be dead flat to prevent distortion; the laser needs to ablate a perfectly clean hole; the chemical cleaning must penetrate deep into every single via consistently; and the plating has to be uniform with minimal surface buildup. If any one of those variables drift, even by a micron, the stack fails. To combat this, there is a massive push for land- less or minimal annular rings to increase density. With the capability of plating blind vias shut, combined with the precision of LDI registration, landless and minimal annual rings are definitely being looked at as more standard options rather than a risk. But this push for density, including sub-1-mil line and space, requires equally innovative approaches downstream. Even if you can successfully image the lines on an LDI, there are X number of subse- quent steps—etching factors, developer unifor- mity, handling—that can limit your ability to scale. However, this pressure is driving positive change; it is forcing more development in the laminate sector for the general PCB industry, rather than just for a select few niche players. I find it fascinating that LDI, lasers, and vacuum dry film are now just basic building blocks of our day- to-day. In the 1980s, we were hand-drawing circuits and hole-punching boards. To see that evolution to where we are now—building 8N8 structures with landless vias and sub-1-mil traces—is incredible. What a crazy era. From a business operations perspective, what do you see as the most difficult challenge(s)? Navigating the "fog of globalism" while trying to make long-term capital investments. From an equipment standpoint, there is a distinct shift: Asian manufacturers are coming online with significantly better support and build quality than we saw a decade ago. The "quality risk" gap has nar- rowed, meaning we have more options for high-per- formance machinery than ever before. However, the geopolitical risk has replaced the technical risk. It is becoming incredibly difficult to gauge what the next five years will look like in terms of trade dynamics and supply chain accessibility. We are operating in a sector—high-mix, high-reliability— that is in overdrive. We need to invest in the best technology to stay competitive; but making those five- to 10-year strategic bets is challenging when the global trade environment is so uncertain. The challenge isn't finding the right machine; it's predict- ing the landscape it will operate in. Sunny Patel