PCB Laser Etching and Pocketing in a Single Step

Laser Depth Engraving with the LPKF ProtoLaser

Blind openings' in printed circuit boards are used for a wide variety of applications in the electronics industry, but also in medical technology, for example. These openings can be helpful or even necessary, for example, to keep the height of assembled PCBs low or to open RF antennas on an inner layer of a multilayer design.

Using a test sample, we have investigated how a wide variety of materials behave when different lasers are used to create 'blind openings'. However, milling of pockets is an initially obvious solution, but limiting is the fact that the diameter cannot be smaller than the smallest tool. For HDI PCBs, for example, a laser is therefore the ideal tool for producing 'blind openings' with extreme precision in all dimensions.

Learn more about the test results in our techpaper and register now for a free download.