Posted September 23rd, 2015 in
Trade Shows
2016 Plasma Etch Trade Show Schedule
We are pleased to announce our 2016 Trade Show schedule as follows:
MD&M West February 9-11, 2016, Anaheim Convention Center – Anaheim, CA
IPC Apex Expo 2016 March 15 – 17 2016, Las Vegas Convention Center – Las Vegas, NV
MD&M East June 14-16, 2016, Jacob K. Javits Convention Center – New York, NY
Semicon West July 12-14, 2016, Moscone Center – San Francisco, CA
For more information about our products, come see us at one of our shows, or visit our website at: www.plasmaetch.com
Posted September 21st, 2015 in
Uncategorized
The versatility of plasma technology is one of its most important advantages.
Because plasma is made up of dissociated positively and negatively charged particles (in addition to neutral particles), it will react with a wide variety of substances.
And because the process can be readily controlled and reproduced, plasma can be used to clean, etch, or coat almost any surface without the safety hazards and liquid waste associated with wet processes.
Plasma etching technology can remove organic and inorganic contamination, increase wettability, increase bond strength, and remove residue. If effective surface treatments critical to the efficiency of a process or the reliability of a product, plasma technology may be the best answer.
For years, manufacturers in the electronics sector have used plasma technology for a variety of surface modification and etching applications. Developments and innovations in the field of plasma technology have dramatically expanded the capabilities and potential uses of this clean, safe, cost-effective process.
Plasma etching systems are now utilized for surface activation, etching, and deposition with a variety of materials. The plasma process can render most materials:
• Clean
• Hydrophilic (Wettable)
• Hydrophobic (Non Wettable)
• Bondable
• Markable
• Lubricated
• Abrasion Resistant
• Passivated
• Many Other Uniquely Engineered Surface Characteristics
The versatility of the plasma process means that it can be used for a full range of cleaning and etching tasks, from removing small amounts of contaminants in a final clean process, to the more demanding job of desmear and etchback in the printed circuit board industry.
Plasma is often used to clean odd-shaped parts with areas that are not readily accessible, such as blind holes. It can also clean assemblies made of different materials.
Plasma is exceptionally useful when bonding two materials of different origins, such as wood and metal, or rubber and plastic. When each surface is 100% free of contaminates, or “plasma clean”, significantly stronger bonds can be achieved.
The plasma etching process occurs in a vacuum and uses radio frequency energy, instead of heat, to create plasma that produces the desired reaction with the surface that it is treating. This helps to avoid heat damage and promote safety.
The process is highly controllable and repeatable, ensuring uniform results – product to product, and batch to batch.
Plasma can, in many cases, eliminate the need for CFCs and other solvents. This will, in turn, reduce costly disposal of hazardous by-products.
To find out more about how Plasma Etch might be able to help you improve your processes or products, visit our website.
Posted September 10th, 2015 in
Uncategorized
The plasma process generates plasma fields with very high energy near the edges of the electrode. This causes accelerated etching on the surfaces near the electrode edge. This localized, higher energy plasma is caused by a reaction with the vacuum chamber walls.
Since the end result is higher etch rates at the sides of the electrode, there are slightly lower etch rates as you approach the center of the electrode. Sometimes this creates a bull’s eye effect or process non-uniformity. Some plasma surface modification systems have electrostatically shielded vacuum chambers, so this bull’s eye effect is shielded, preventing plasma reactions in the chamber walls.
For more information about our plasma treatment systems and how plasma cleaning can benefit your manufacturing process, visit our informative website here: Plasma Treatment.
Advantages of Electrostatically Shielded Vacuum Walls
Plasma created is uniform across the entire electrode surface, preventing a bull’s eye pattern and allowing a uniform etch every time.
Results are reliable, consistent, and repeatable.
The surface treatment of each product is independent of the product’s location or orientation on the electrode.
Each form of plasma treatment is very reliable and once properly set up with the proper settings in place, results are very uniform and operation is very simple for the user.
Posted September 1st, 2015 in
Uncategorized
The use of high frequency radio frequency (R.F.) transmitters is instrumental in creating a high efficiency plasma surface treatment. High frequency plasma also helps improve uniformity of plasma across the electrode’s surface. The frequency used by plasma systems is generally a constant 13.56 MHz. RF transmission power is constant throughout the plasma treatment process and is independent of other plasma parameters such as temperature and vacuum settings. The RF power is selected via a switch on the plasma cleaning system or in the software controls depending on the make and model of the unit.
Advantages of High Frequency R.F. Transmitters
The isotropic properties of high frequency plasma allows for the etching and cleaning of oddly shaped and curved objects. More reactive plasma is generated by a high frequency R.F. transmitter, resulting in a faster etch rate.
