The purpose of a plastic leaded chip carrier is to create a special SMD circuit that helps with the seamless mounting of ICs on different PCBs. With the help of PLCCs, we can easily perform soldering on these PCBs and in the sockets as well.
There is no doubt that with the help of these carriers, we are able to reuse the same ICs during the purpose. Once we are able to achieve a stable design, we can easily aim for soldering the PLCC on the board.
The leads in this process are also easy to identify because these are present in a J shape on the board. So brace yourself and get ready to explore PLCCs and LCCs with us because we are going to differentiate between them in detail through this post!
What are PLCC Packages?
PLCC means Plastic Leaded Chip Carrier, which consists of four sides and forms a visible J shape. We mostly rely on green-colored materials to develop PLCCs. It is a special component that serves to solder and mount the components on PCBs.
Due to this reason; the carrier works well with the ICs and proves to be effective for soldering and mounting at the same time. There are two common PLCC patterns which are common to use. One is rectangular, while the other is a square pattern. These PLCCs have been in use for many years. Many producers are now relying on these PLCCs to meet the needs of their clients successfully.
These PLCCs appear to be identical; however, the factor of heat dissipation distinguishes them from each other. There is no doubt that PLCCs are budget-friendly. It means these are also easier to produce on a commercial scale. We can easily replace high-end ceramic carriers with PLCCs easily without disturbing our budget at all.
The J shape of PLCCs is also important to consider, which is responsible for feasible mourning and soldering inside different sockets. There are also wing-shaped carriers present, but still, these cannot compare to the J-shaped PLCCs at all. Such PLCCs are also easy to restore in case the socket gets damaged.
What is an LCC package?
The importance of chip carriers in the field of electronics cannot be ignored. Due to this reason, these prove to be crucial for simple and complex PCBs.
These are available in different shapes and sizes to choose from. It is also important to determine the type of PLCC we need to use for our application. Some PLCCs are of gull-winged shape while others are J shaped. Each shape has an important role to play in the entire performance of the PCBs.
PLCCs are always leaded, and those which are non-leaded are LCCs which means leadless chip carriers. These are basically plastic chip carriers and are highly different from PLCCs. LCCs are also easy to recognize because of their ceramic base and special padding in different areas of the package.
The pins of LCCs are of ceramic and metals as well. It means you can easily choose from different types of LCCs without compromising your budget at all.
Benefits of the PLCC Package
There is no doubt that the properties of PLCCs make them highly important in the electronics domain. Due to this reason, all the credit goes to their features and excellent properties.
Therefore, the features of PLCCs set them apart from other types of chip carriers present. In this section, we will take a look at some of the major benefits of PLCCs component packages to better understand these special chip carriers.
1. The ‘J’ shape
The best part about PLCCs is their special J shape. Due to this reason, PLCCs provide the producers with several benefits on the whole. This unique shape of PLCCs is useful to save up space and aim for miniaturization within the PCBs. Regardless of the different types of chip carriers available, J-shaped carriers are more likely to be efficient for fine performance.
Taking a quad flat package that comes with gull-winged leads creates problems in the mounting. It folds outside, while PLCCs always fold inside, which is not troublesome at all. In all this, if the PLCCs get compromised, then it is easy to restore them without damaging them further. Replacing the damaged PLCC with a new one is also easier in this case.
2. Connecting a PLCC
The attachment of a PLCC is also crucial to consider. We can also rely on former soldering methods for this purpose. With this, we can mount the PLCC to the socket easily. If your PLCC has a PLD chip or a programmable chip in it, you need to analyze it before attaching it to the setup.
When we do this, we make sure that the chip has no errors in it at all. If there are errors, we can easily fix them before proceeding with the process further. It is important to know that if you are using a programmable chip, then it is important to program it before mounting it on the PCB. Or else you cannot program it later after the attachment.
3. Delivers safety to the chip
One important aspect to note is that these chips are useful in terms of safety and protection. These are also easier to ensure stability within the carrier as well. There is no need to struggle with the attachment of PLCC with the socket at all.
The shape and overall nature of PLCC are important to consider for extra feasibility and stability as well. It means the biggest benefit of working with PLCCs is that these do not damage the surrounding parts at all.
4. Cost-effectiveness
There is no doubt that PLCCs are highly cost-efficient. These are also affordable to produce, and their market price often comes under the budget of the buyers. Because of this cost-effectiveness, PLCCs are crucial to consider when you don’t want to disturb the budget and eventually avail of different benefits of PLCCs on all counts.
PLCC Package vs. LCC package
You can consider LCC as an upgraded version of PLCC. The reason is that the LCCs are a newer version of their parent chip carrier. These are different from PLCCs in many areas. Due to this reason, it is important to compare them based on different factors to have a better idea about both types on a much deeper level. Make sure to read the differences between PLCCs and LCCs below to have a clear idea bout their nature before using them in your applications as well.
· Leaded vs. Leadless
The basic difference between these two carriers is the absence and presence of lead. It is clear that PLCCs contain lead while LCCs do not. Therefore, their applications are also different as well.
It is important to determine whether you need to go for PLCC or LCC based on the factor of lead. It will be beneficial because inappropriate selection of chip carriers can complicate the process and might cause irreversible damage to the application as well.
· Versatility
LCC packages are also portable, which makes them easy to handle and also much more feasible on all counts. Even for complex applications, LCCs are useful and never compromise the PCBs at all.
From mounting to unmounting, these LCCs are also much more reliable at the same time. Also, for soldering purposes, these LCCs are more reliable than PLCCs without putting you in any hustle at all.
· Attachment procedure
It is important to know the attachment process of both these chip carriers is different. There are many reasons for it, and one of them is their nature. For LCCs, we rely on surface mounting to avoid complications.
We cannot solder the LCCs because their nature is in contrast to this process. Other than this, when it comes to PLCCs, we can go for both soldering and surface mounting to attach them to the sockets. Therefore it is better to use the chip carrier based on the nature of attachment. Or else it can complicate the process on the whole.
Conclusion
There is no doubt that both PLCCs and LCCs are in high demand, especially for complex fields like electronics and the PCB industry. Due to this reason, their significance is increasing as the landscape of these chip carriers is changing with time.
Due to this reason, it is important to have a detailed look at the comparison of these amazing chip carriers. In this way, it will be much easier to select from these chip carriers easily. We hope that now you can easily select from these chip carriers after going through this discussion.
We have discussed different differences between LCCs and PLCCs for you in this post. Other than this, we have tried to shed light on crucial aspects of both chip carriers so that you can understand their functioning better without facing confusion at all!
