Metal Core PCB Provider: 3 Factors to Select One!

A metal core PCB is a type of circuit board that has metal traces instead of copper. It is often used in high-voltage applications because it can withstand higher voltages than traditional PCBs. Some examples of products that use metal core PCBs include power supplies, lighting circuits, and heating systems.

MPCBs are made by printing conductive ink onto the base layer of glass fiber epoxy board. This ink contains metal particles that form a conductive path when they are exposed to heat. When the board is baked in an oven, these paths become permanently etched into the surface of the circuit board.

What are the benefits of using a Metal Core PCB?

The most obvious benefit is better signal integrity. Tin plating offers superior electrical properties compared to standard copper plating. It also reduces crosstalk by reducing impedance and impedance mismatches between layers. This leads to improved performance in high-frequency applications such as RFID tags or antennas where signal degradation is often caused by impedance mismatches between layers in the PCB structure. In addition, tin-plated layers make it possible for manufacturers to reduce their manufacturing costs by increasing circuit density without sacrificing performance or reliability.

Tin-plated layers also enable manufacturers to include multiple ground planes on one side of the board without causing interference with each other or having any adverse effects on adjacent components or traces because they all share the same ground plane which greatly reduces noise.

How to choose the right MCPCB provider?

When you are looking for a metal core PCB provider, there are some things to look for before you choose one. Here's how.

1. Find out if they have the equipment and experience

The number one thing you want to know is whether or not they have the equipment and experience necessary to make your design come to life. Not all companies have the same capabilities and not all companies have the same skill level. Some might be able to do it but they may not be able to do it as quickly as you need them too. Some might take longer because they don't have enough employees or maybe they just aren't that good at what they do yet. It's important that you find someone who has the right equipment and knows how to use it in order to get your job done right and on time.

2. Get references from previous customers

Asking for references from previous customers is always an important step in choosing an MCPCB company because it shows how many people like working with them and what kind of quality their work is like after all is said and done. If you are looking for someone who will do high-quality work but also charge a reasonable price then this can be an excellent way of finding those kinds of people.

3. Pricing

Last but not least, find out the average market price for your project and then find a provider who is willing to complete your project in that budget. However, do not compromise on quality for the sake of saving some bucks.

Metal core PCB advantages and design

Metal Core PCB (MCPCB) is a technology that has gained much popularity in recent years in the electronics industry. It is a type of printed circuit board that incorporates a base metal material, usually aluminum or copper. It is an ideal solution for applications where the printed circuit board itself may become too hot for the components and must be cooled. The heat is drawn away from the components and into the base material, which acts as a heat sink.

➜ Learn here Benefits of Metal Core PCB Fabrication

MCPCBs were first developed in the 1960s for use in military and aerospace applications where size, weight and reliability were critical factors. Due to their advantages over other materials, they are now also widely used in commercial products like automotive electronics, telecommunications and medical devices.

Today, it is widely used in various industries and has many advantages. The metal-based CCLs are widely used in the fields of LED lighting, power supply, semiconductor cooling and automotive electronics due to their special features.

They are made up of a dielectric layer, a base metal, and a copper layer. Metal core PCBs can be single-sided, double-sided, or multi-layer. The typical thickness of the metal substrate ranges from 0.5mm to 2mm, with the normal value being 1.0mm. The metal core provides a thermal path between the components and a heat sink that is used to dissipate the heat generated by power semiconductor devices such as LEDs, IGBTs and MOSFETs.

It is widely used in the LED lighting industry with the benefits of reduced weight, high power dissipation and improved thermal management.

The base metallic material in them can come in various alloy material types, such as:

Aluminum: This is the most commonly used metal core in MCPCBs. It works well with high-powered LEDs and is lightweight, durable and thermally conductive. Aluminum has a thermal conductivity rating of 170 W/mK.

Copper: Copper is also commonly used in them due to its durable nature and its high thermal conductivity rating of 401 W/mK. Copper also has higher stiffness than aluminum.

Why Use a Metal Core PCB?

Metal core circuit boards are used in applications with high power requirements and/or where significant heat is present. In these applications, the heat sink would be attached directly to the metal core of the PCB. These applications include power supplies, ballasts, inverters and other electronics that generate high levels of heat.

Advantages of Metal Core PCB

The main application advantage of metal core printed circuit boards is to improve heat dissipation for high power components. For example, LED lights often use aluminum as the base material to dissipate heat well.

Compared with normal FR4 (FR4 stands for fire retardant material number 4), MCPCB can conduct heat more efficiently and dissipate heat faster. The standard FR4 glass epoxy substrates have low thermal conductivity – 0.2 W/mK (watts per meter Kelvin). Whereas the thermal conductivity of an aluminum plate is around 200W/mK, which is 1000 times higher than FR4! Therefore, it can be used in products where high speed operation or heat accumulates.

Metal Core PCB design guidelines

Power dissipation: The most important factor for designing any metal core PCB is to estimate the power dissipation at each component location. This will help you decide which areas require extra copper thickness and thermal vias to provide better heat sinking for those areas. It is advisable to use professional software for this purpose as it helps designers quickly calculate the thermal resistance of components and package footprints.

PCB layout: The design of the PCB layout can affect the thermal performance of your circuit board significantly. Components that generate more heat should be positioned close to the edge.

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Everything You Must Know About PCBA or Printed Circuit Board Assembly

Learning all about PCBA

A PCB or commonly known as the printed circuit board is inclined to associate & support different types of electronic elements with the assistance of conductive fundamentals. The majority of the electronic parts are etched over the PCB or could be integrated in what is called the substrate. Printed circuit boards could have 1 or 2 copper layers, based over which they could be known as single or dual-sided. More often than not, the chief insulating substrate employed in printed circuit boards is FR4 glass epoxy. PCBs are majorly utilized in the electronic market, not including the plain products which could work otherwise. Below are a few of the other things which you are required to know.

A deeper comprehension of printed circuit boards

PCBs, as stated, is an imperative in the electronic market. Whilst there are other options for instance point to point construction, PCBs are efficient and very useful for varied types of production requirements. More often than not, PCBs are available in a comprehensive array of dimensions, and are tailor-made to fit your particular requirements. PCBs need a design endeavor on part of the fabricator to obtain the correct type of circuit. In the long procedure of developing electronic items, PCBs are greatly efficient & reasonably priced in comparison with some of the other wiring elements. In case the printed circuit board does not have any elements integrated in it, it’s called soldered wiring board. Nevertheless, the PCBA industry is a multimillion industry with a big number of fabricators & businesses comprised at different levels. 

Discovering a trustworthy PCB fabricator

When you are talking about PCBs, you need to locate a fabricator you could depend on. You should know and check certain things prior to you could pick a provider that matches your needs.

What is their proficiency? All printed circuit board fabrication services are not the same, & hence, specialization is a trait you can’t do the negotiation on. You also need to appreciate their customer base, since that could state loads about the type of work they have carried out so far. For instance, in case a firm has worked with customers in the arena of telecommunications, aeronautical & medicine, they would certainly have more experience as compared to somebody that has worked with just 1 or a couple of firms in the same industry. 

Costing & testing. PCB fabricators are looked forward to be transparent & greatly honest with their customers as far as quality tests are taken into view. In case needed, they should be eager to talk about their testing procedure in detail. Further, the costing must be as flexible as feasible.