Before we choose a kind of rigid PCB material, we have to know about some concept of key parameters.
One key aspect of creating a manufacturable PCB design is ensuring you select a brand of material that is fully compliant and certified to IPC-4101. An IPC-4101 certified material can be used to be used for rigid or multilayer printed boards.
Ensuring that your product has a compliant material system will give you the confidence that, in conjunction with a robust manufacturing process, the chosen material will provide a certified and verifiable level of performance.
Some of the key aspect characteristics of IPC-4101 material systems are shown in the table below:
Key material characteristics:
· CTE – Z axis (Co-efficient of thermal expansion): This is a measure of how much the base material will expand when heated. Measured as PPM/degree C (both before and after Tg) and also in % over a temperature range.
· Td (Decomposition temperature): This is the temperature at which material weight changes by 5%. This parameter determines the thermal survivability of the material.
· Tg (Glass transition temperature): The temperature at which the material stops acting like a rigid material and begins to behave like a plastic / softer.
· Dk (Dielectric constant): The ratio of the capacitance using that material as a dielectric, compared to a similar capacitor which has a vacuum as its dielectric.
· CTI (Comparative tracking Index): A measure of the electrical breakdown properties of an insulating material. It is used for electrical safety assessment of electrical apparatus. Rating can be seen below.
CTI (V) | PLC |
>=600V | 0 |
400V-600V | 1 |
250V-400V | 2 |
175V-250V | 3 |
100V-175V | 4 |
<100V | 5 |
IPC-4101 Number | 99 | 101 | 121 | 124 | 126 | 127 | 128 | 129 | 130 |
Tg(min)C | 150 | 110 | 110 | 150 | 170 | 110 | 150 | 170 | 170 |
Td (min) C | 325 | 310 | 310 | 325 | 340 | 310 | 325 | 340 | 340 |
CTE Z 50-260 C | 3,5% | 4% | 4% | 3,5% | 3% | 4% | 3,5% | 3,5% | 3% |
Dk/Permittivity (max) | 5,4 | 5,4 | 5,4 | 5,4 | 5,4 | 5,4 | 5,4 | 5,4 | 5,4 |
Many of our customers choose to specify a range of IPC-4101 laminate's that are certified for use in the production of their PCB’s. As your supply chain experts, we select a material from your range that is freely available and meets any key cost point parameters. We also make certain that your qualified material meets the UL criteria for flammability, as specified by the UL standard flammability rating "V0".
Return to information list