Laser processing of thin glass printed circuit boards with a picosecond laser at 515 nm wavelength

Abstract

High temperature applications of printed circuit boards (PCB) require materials with specifically adapted properties. Hence, conventional electrically isolating glass fiber and epoxy-resin materials have to be replaced by thin borosilicate glass. Therefore, an industrially suitable process to remove the metal coatings from the brittle thin glass has to be developed. Laser processing has the advantage of individualization for the production of customer-specific PCBs. Thus, laser ablation of metal coatings for electrical isolation is investigated with different material composites based on thin glass. The study aims to identify a laser process for a picosecond laser source with 515 nm wavelength to perform the process without damaging the glass substrate with a high throughput.