Small volume microvia PCBs

Does .008" count as a micro via? If so, check out PCBExpress -- the hole has to be through all layers, and is restricted to no less than .008", so it may not count -- but maybe that's good enough?

(I dunno what counts as a micro via -- I'm still in the stone age for PCB manufacture)

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www.wescottdesign.com

I have not used it - so far I manage things with normal down to 0.2mm vias - but I think I have seen it offered at pcbcart.com . They do a good job for me, if they offer it they will likely do it well. No point asking if it is not on offer though, they tend to reply "yes we can do it" to everything and then spend lots of time to make you give up - price, requirements etc. Happened to me when I asked for stencils for a board. Beats me why, they have been very good for years for me, on that one I eventually ordered the board - and got the usual high quality - and made the stencils elsewhere, it just took me some time until I grasped they did not want me with my stencils :-). A guy I know who has spent months in China speculated their culture precludes them from saying a plain "no", may be it was that, I don't know.

But they sure are an excellent PCB house for prototype quantities, easy to communicate with on technical details etc.

Dimiter

------------------------------------------------------ Dimiter Popoff Transgalactic Instruments

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A typical microvia could be a 0.1mm (4 thou) hole in a 0.25mm (10 thou) land. This transforms the problem of escaping a BGA into something quite straightforward.

Thanks for that. I have used pcbcart many times and I share your enthusiasm for their splendid work.

Microvias were not listed on their site a year or so ago and when I enquired they said that they could do microvias on levels 1-2 and 1-3, plus the backside layers. It was the 1-3 claim that made me wonder whether their enthusiasm was triumphing over their experience.

I see pcbcart now offer 0.1mm vias.

hole

so

CB

Do you know if the 0.1 can go all through the board? I have been drilling with 0.2 (initially even 0.3) every BGA pad since > a decade, this works fine with 1.27 pitched ones - and at 4 mil technology allows 3 traces between the pads on each side. But 1.27 is rare nowadays so I am looking at my options, will have to regroup before too long :-).

Thanks,

Dimiter

------------------------------------------------------ Dimiter Popoff Transgalactic Instruments

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As I understand it, the 0.1 holes are true through-board vias. They must be best friends with the drill bit manufacturers!

has an online quote system so I ran the numbers for a six layer 5cm x 5cm board, 6 mil tracks, 12 day delivery. For 100 pieces, the 0.3 and 0.2 holes costed out the same. 0.1 holes gave a price uplift of approximately 35% - from approx $3 to approx $4.