The µ-Screen can be used just like an ordinary mesh screen but unlike the latter comprises a custom etched metal foil supported by a surrounding mesh and mounted in the centre of a conventional screen frame. The foil is only etched where printed features are required and nowhere else. The underside of the foil is coated with an organic gasketting layer that provides a sealed channel into which the ink flows during printing. Consequently, there are no problems associated with holes in the screen being partly obscured by the print pattern. Straight and curved features can be printed with ease at any orientation.
With this increased resolution capability it is possible to make circuits smaller, with fewer layers and with increased yield and also reduce laser trimming. This also opens the way for applications which are the traditional preserve of thin film and photoimageable processes – both of which cost approximately 5 times more in terms of substrate production costs.
Applications which are showing the most promise are microwave circuits, high density interconnect, sensors and precision resistors and capacitors and many of these are currently under development.
The µ-Screen has now been assessed at a development level across a wide range of applications and, in collaboration with MCI (Cambridge), is now available as a production tool.
For more information see http://www.era.co.uk/microscreen.htm or email microscreen@era.co.uk