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Solder mask laser etching?

A project log for Laser4DIY

Laser4DIY is an open-hardware machine for producing PCBs by ablating copper with a laser

fablab-mnchenFabLab München 07/13/2023 at 10:410 Comments

When you are done with laser structuring the copper your PCB still is not finished. A proper solder mask is one of the thinks you'd want. Wouldn't it be nice if it could be done with a laser as well?

We did a quick test with a solder mask film (Bungard Lami). This film is meant to be used with a photo etching process, but maybe it can just be selectively removed with a laser?

We used a heat press to put the film on the PCB (usually a laminator is used), then put it under a UV lamp for a minute to cure, and threw it into a CO2 laser cutter. A couple of engraving passes at full power later revealed the bare copper. But the question is: is it complety removed so that solder sticks to it?

We wiped the board with isopropanol and hit it with a soldering iron.

That worked!

(These are solder pads with D=2mm)

Crips edges, takes solder well, very promising!

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