A process for making a circuit board modifies a catalytic laminate having a resin rich surface with catalytic particles dispersed below a surface exclusion depth. The catalytic laminate is subjected to a drilling and resin-rich surface removal operation to expose the catalytic particles, followed by an electroless plating operation which deposits a thin layer of conductive material on the surface. A photo-masking step follows to define circuit traces, after which an electro-plating deposition occurs, followed by a resist strip operation and a quick etch to remove electroless copper which was previously covered by photoresist.

A ceramic copper circuit board according to an embodiment includes a ceramic substrate and a first copper part. The first copper part is bonded at a first surface of the ceramic substrate via a first brazing material part. The thickness of the first copper part is 0.6 mm or more. The side surface of the first copper part includes a first sloped portion. The width of the first sloped portion is not more than 0.5 times the thickness of the first copper part. The first brazing material part includes a first jutting portion jutting from the end portion of the first sloped portion. The length of the first jutting portion is not less than 0 μm and not more than 200 μm. The contact angle between the first jutting portion and the first sloped portion is 65° or less.

A printed circuit board includes: an insulating layer including a cavity formed therein, the cavity being recessed into the insulating layer from a top surface of the insulating layer; a first circuit layer formed inside the insulating layer such that a portion of the first circuit layer is disposed within the cavity; a second circuit layer disposed above the insulating layer; a first surface-treated layer disposed above the portion of the first circuit layer disposed within the cavity; and a second surface-treated layer disposed above the second circuit layer.

An etching method for manufacturing a substrate structure having a thick electrically conductive layer, and a substrate structure having a thick electrically conductive layer are provided. The etching method includes providing an electrically insulating substrate structure including a thermally conductive and electrically insulating layer, an electrically conductive layer, and a non-photosensitive polymer masking layer, removing one part of the non-photosensitive polymer masking layer and one part of the electrically conductive layer by a machining process to form at least one electrically conductive recess having the electrically conductive layer exposed, forming a predetermined thickness ratio between a thickness of the electrically conductive recess and a thickness of the electrically conductive layer, removing a reserved part of the electrically conductive layer between a bottom wall of the electrically conductive recess and a bottom surface of the electrically conductive layer, and removing a remaining part of the non-photosensitive polymer masking layer.

Methods and composition sets for forming etch-resist masks on a metallic surface are provided. The method may include depositing a first aqueous composition comprising a first reactive component onto a metallic layer of a substrate; depositing a second aqueous composition comprising a second reactive component on selected portions of the deposited first aqueous composition to form, from a chemical reaction between the first reactive component and the second reactive component, a bi-component material mask in a pattern to protect selected regions of the metallic layer; and depositing an etch solution to remove the metallic layer in regions not protected by the bi-component material mask.

A method of forming a metallic pattern on a substrate is provided. The method includes applying onto a metallic surface, a chemically surface-activating solution having an activating agent that chemically activates the metallic surface; non-impact printing an etch-resist ink on the activated surface to produce an etch resist mask according to a predetermined pattern, wherein at least one ink component within the etch-resist ink undergoes a chemical reaction with the activated metallic surface to immobilize droplets of the etch-resist ink when hitting the activated surface; performing an etching process to remove unmasked metallic portions that are not covered with the etch resist mask; and removing the etch-resist mask.

Provided in one example is an article. The article including: a first electrode; a switching layer disposed over at least a portion of the first electrode, the switching layer including a metal oxide; and a second electrode disposed over at least a portion of the switching layer. The first electrode, the switching layer, and the second electrode are parts of a resistive random-access memory, and one or both of the first electrode and the second electrode is a part of a layer of a printed circuit board.

The disclosure provides a method of manufacturing a flexible circuit electrode assembly and an apparatus manufactured by said method. According to the method, an electrically conductive sheet is laminated to an electrically insulative sheet. An electrode is formed on the electrically conductive sheet. An electrically insulative layer is formed on a tissue contacting surface of the electrode. The individual electrodes are separated from the laminated electrically insulative sheet and the electrically conductive sheet. In another method, a flexible circuit is vacuum formed to create a desired profile. The vacuum formed flexible circuit is trimmed. The trimmed vacuum formed flexible circuit is attached to a jaw member of a clamp jaw assembly.

A master tool is provided with an ink pattern on a major surface thereof. The ink pattern is formed by a screen printing process. A stamp-making material is applied to the major surface of the master tool to form a stamp having a stamping pattern being negative to the ink pattern of the master tool. The stamping pattern is inked with an ink composition and contacted with a metalized surface to form a printed pattern on a metalized surface of a substrate according to the stamping pattern. Using the printed pattern as an etching mask, the metalized surface is etched to form electrically conductive traces on the substrate.

A printing process for printing an ink pattern on a substrate is provided. The ink pattern to be printed is based on an available pattern layout. The pattern layout defines a desired layout of the ink pattern to be printed. Based on the pattern layout an input image for allocating dot positions of the ink pattern is generated. The printing process includes a step of comparing a scan image with the input image to carry out a quality inspection to detect any print defects in the printed ink pattern. The printing process includes a step of providing a decision on an approval or a rejection of the printed ink pattern. In case of an approval, the substrate can be supplied to a subsequent processing station to finalize the substrate. In case of a rejection, the substrate including print defects can be recycled.