Production of Step Stencils

When it comes to conventional solder paste stencils, LPKF StencilLasers are known for their precision and speed. Now an application team at LPKF has developed and optimized a new production process which reliably produces steps for fine pitch connections in conventional stencil foils.

A step stencil is a special SMD stencil which has local recesses (step-down) or bumps (step-up) inserted. Until now, these recesses were marked in the layout of the circuitry and created by separate production means. This meant additional expenditures of time and money, but this issue has been nullified thanks to the latest developments by the LPKF applications team.

In the paper "Production of Step Stencils," Sascha Nehus and Florian Roick outline the work done by LPKF application engineers that enable step stencils to be produced on LPKF StencilLaser systems.

The paper covers:

• Machine parameters
• CAM data
• Influence of process gas parameters
• Pulse spacing
• Average area covered
• Multiple markings
• Nonlinear effects of the pulse width