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PWT can now offer the service of Blind micro-vias down to 100um diameter (0.1mm),
Blind Micro-vias for Micro Ball Grid Arrays.

Due to recent machine purchases and extensive trials, PWT can now offer the service of Blind micro-vias down to 100um diameter (0.1mm), using depth controlled drilling to an accuracy greater then +- 12 microns. This can be achieved by mechanically drilling and avoids the need for Expensive Laser Drilling equipment.

This service is particularly beneficial to customers using Micro Ball Grid Array devices as it allows us to drill holes to from the outer layer to an inner layer, below the board surface. This allows signals to be routed underneath the blind via, or devices placed underneath the Bga on the opposite side of the board, therefore reducing the number of layers needed on the Circuit Board and reducing the board size.

	100 Micron Micro Via by PWT

Ball Grid Arrays. (BGA) - Background Information:

Ball Grid Array (BGA) packages have the I/O connections on the interior of the device as opposed to the edges as Quad Flat Pack (QFP) packages. The I/O connections have the leads replaced by solder balls, which are arranged in a matrix across the bottom of the substrate.

BGA devices have several advantages over QFPs.

• Fewer damaged leads as the BGA connectors are solid solder balls, which are unlikely to be damaged by handling.
• More leads per unit area. The counts are increasing in the same area by reducing the pitch of the solder balls.
• Smaller footprints. Bga devices are much smaller than QFP devices with the same number of connections.

As electronic devices are becoming smaller and more powerful, the need for components with more On/Off pins per square inch is increasing. A typical BGA package contains twice as many connections as a Quad Flat Pack (QFP) package of the same area. A standard Bga device has a connector pitch of 1mm with a ball size of 0.4mm. New Bga devices are being used more frequently with pitches of 0.75mm and have a typical connector count of over 196 for a 15mm2 device where as a similar sizes QFP will have only 100 connections.

The problem encountered by designers using Bga devices is routing the tracks from the Bga device to other elements on the circuit board. The first generation Bga devices had a ball pitch of 1.5mm, which left plenty of room in-between the pads for escape routing. The current generation Bga devices used for mobile phone applications, etc., have a ball pitch of 0.75mm and a ball size of 0.4mm.

Press contacts: Chris Hare - PWT Managing Director email: Chris Hare | Use web form here UK Tel: 01707 338 871 International: +44 1707 338 871

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