Metallization Design Guidelines Plated Through Vias TaN & NiChrome Resistors Polyimide Bridges & Dams

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Few companies have the capability to provide edge and via wrap-around services as Spectrum Microwave does. Selective 360° deposition allows for Gold to be deposited with a thickness of 100-400 micro inches.

Metal schemes including Gold, Copper, Nickel, Nichrome, and Tantalum Nitride lines/spaces to ±0.000050".

Another example of adding value through innovation is found while utilizing Polyimide for bridges and dams. The advantage of poly bridges over traditional air bridges is that non-conductive polyimide adds a level of support preventing the bridge from collapsing into the circuit below. Spectrum Microwave has taken that process one step further by adding a second layer of polyimide on top of the bridge, complementing the foundation of structural integrity added to the bridge process by the base Polyimide layer.

Polyimide Supported Bridges

Poly bridges offer unparalelled integrity over unsupported air bridges through the use of Polyimide as a supporting structure under the circuit traces. Repeatability insures that consistant circuit patterns can be drawn without tolerance issues or trimming delays.

Polyimide bridges help maintain circuit integretity by eliminating the possibility of shorts and open circuits due to collaped bridge lines. Spectrum Microwave goes one step further by adding a secondary layer of Polyimide over the existing bridge network. This Polyimide cocoon gives unpressidented protection to the bridge structure, a feature that other thin film service firms do not offer.

Polyimide Solder Dams

Solder dams can prevent a breech of unwanted solder through to a via which could contaminate the opposing plane. Adding a strip of non-conductive Polyimide near critical bonding pads prevents solder from reaching open vias. This Polyimide dam helps control the movement of solder averting via contamination and surface integrity.

Metal Solder Dams

An alternative to Polyimide Dams is the use of TaN, Nickel, and Titanium Tungsten as dam materials. These metal dams are either layed onto existing Gold patterns or made by exposing an element layer beneath the exist surface.