The very intricate process of producing printed circuit boards, or PCBA assembly, plays a crucial role in the entire electronics industry. Circuit boards of many different types and sizes are at the heart of every electronic gadget and piece of equipment today.

For this process to be efficient and to produce high quality circuit boards, PCB assembly should be done with the right equipment, expertise, skills and materials.

When it comes to outsourcing board assembly, it is very important to ensure that this process is efficiently done, meeting a very high standard of quality and efficiency reflected in the many international standards of quality. If the process is poorly done, the expected end product is useless or has a very low functionality to offer potential customers.

In PCB assembly there are essential layers to the circuit board, each important to making it functional.

The Basic Alternating Layers on Every Printed Circuit Board

• Substrate - The substrate is the base material of a functional printed circuit board. It is the material that provides the rigidity of the circuit board.
• Copper - This is a thin layer of conductive copper foil that is added to each functional side of the PCB. Whether the board is single-sided or double-sided, this is the material added on the functional side of the board. The layer of copper traces that connects every component.
• Soldermask - On the top of the layer of copper there is the solder mask. It provides the PCB its distinct green color. This layer insulates the copper traces from unintentionally contacting other conductive materials that may lead to short circuits. It keeps every component on the board in place.
• Silkscreen - The final layer on a PCB board is the white silkscreen. This is the layer where labels on PCB are added. It helps indicate the function of each component on the board.

Want to learn more about PCB assembly? Contact Permatech Electronics today to request a consultation.