PCBs can be included among some very complicated components of electrical devices. Some things are combined to create a well-functioning PCB. The copper weights are included among the important things that should be properly understood and also micromanaged during the manufacturing of PCBs.
Due to its being an intense conductor, it is highly regarded as one of the important PCB components. Also, if you fail to calculate as well as apply the copper weight appropriately, a lot of things could go wrong.
Measuring as well as calculating standard PCB copper weight isn’t an easy and straightforward process. Also, you will find much information regarding the copper weight PCB available. We will be gathering all the necessary information in this article
What Does PCB Copper Weight Mean?
As mentioned before, copper is a huge conductor. Also, creating a reliable PCB which works and functions consistently without measuring the weight of copper is almost impossible. This is when the question comes up – what does copper weight PCB mean?
Some calculations help in determining the copper weight. This will then be applied to the remaining parts of the printed circuit board as well as connected to every other thing. This PCB is then set for manufacturing after the analyses are correctly performed.
This sounds simple; however, there are some things that should be known regarding copper which contributes to the calculations of copper weight.
Copper as an alloy
Just like other metals, copper is an alloy and this makes it function as a conductor. You can find alloys in different forms. However, copper is regarded as the most common during PCB construction.
Alloys can come in the tube, sheet, or bar form. This is the first thing you have to consider before you determine the PCB copper’s weight. Understanding the form and grade copper takes are just two of the things that help in calculating the base copper weight. The remaining pertains to the physical measurements that involve copper itself.
Also very important, is that these measurements and calculations have to be perfect. When you fail to do this, it doesn’t mean significant problems, it means you have to return and remeasure things which will take long and be very stressful.
The worst scenario is applying copper into the PCB after you’ve made some wrong calculations. For cases like this, undoing what was done becomes difficult and could be impossible.
Use of Heavy Copper in PCB Design Considerations
Ok the last section, we discussed the PCB copper weight. Here, we will be exploring the use of heavy copper in enhancing PCB design.
Heavy copper could have a thickness of 19 ounces for every square foot. This makes it a well-known option for many printed circuit boards since the majority of the electronics of today are smaller compared to electronics used in the past.
Although other copper sizes can still be used, heavy copper is now the most popular and most common. With heavy copper, you get more options for your PCB design. PCB manufacturing and design experts have found ways of improving the looks of printed circuit boards because of the high versatility of heavy copper.
Also, copper is only responsible for small spaces on circuit boards in PCB manufacturing. With this, it becomes possible to make circuit boards which function effectively and look more desirable that usual.
As a result of this, you can now create artworks from PCBs like this. Achieving this isn’t as difficult as you think. This requires great understanding of the copper weights, measuring as well as weighing copper, coupled with some soldering techniques.
Specifications of the PCB Copper Weight
In this section, we will be considering the specifications of the PCB copper weight. Copper has three main weight classes. Every one of these classes is useful in circuit board manufacturing. The pcb copper weight to thickness can be measured in ounce per sq ft.
Since copper is a strong conductor, which yields predictable mils and amps, measuring it for every square inch is not necessary. It ensures the accuracy of other calculations.
Standard Copper
Standard copper can be described as copper having a plating of a quarter of an ounce for every square foot to about four ounces for every square foot. This used to be the industry standard (defacto) for the building of all PCBs for long periods, as there was a risk of failure whenever it is used for plating printed circuit boards.
In so many cases, standard copper is still used. When a specific copper size isn’t specified, many distributors of materials would assume the manufacturer wants 1.2 ounces for every square foot copper plating.
Heavy Copper
Heavy copper can be described as any copper that is between 5 – 10 ounces for every square foot. Designers and testers have utilized heavy copper over the years for experimenting their designs. Today, you can now create a printed circuit board using heavy copper and in most cases, it is better, compared to the standard copper.
Over the years, this was seen as a risky approach, because many people believed that copper was a very strong conductor and shouldn’t be plated on circuit boards without a terrible result.
This has been proved wrong recently, because lessening the charge’s amp value produced from the heavy copper is possible. This is achieved by exposing this copper before it is plated on a surface.
Conclusion
In summary, copper is an intense conductor and it is highly regarded as one of the important PCB components. Also, if you fail to calculate as well as apply the copper weight appropriately, a lot of things could go wrong. Alloys can come in the tube, sheet, or bar form. This is the first thing you have to consider before you determine the copper weight pcb. Understanding the form and grade copper takes are just two of the things that help in calculating the base copper weight pcb. Also, measurements and calculations have to be perfect. When you fail to do this, it means you have to return and remeasure things which will take long and be very stressful.
