PROCESS CONSIDERATIONS IN THE FABRICATION OF FLUOROPOLYMER PRINTED-CIRCUIT BOARDS

Fluoropolymer-based dielectric materials provide desirable electrical and mechanical properties when used as insulator materials for printed wiring boards (PWB's), However, along with the significant performanc e and reliability advantages of these insulator materials for microwav e and high speed digital applications, there are also significant proc essing challenges, This paper will review the significant electrical a nd mechanical properties of fluoropolymer-based packaging materials, a nd will discuss the unique processing challenges encountered in the fa brication of PTFE printed circuit boards and modules, Key features of the IBM Microelectronics High Performance Carrier fabrication process will be described as they relate to those challenges.