Nanocoating Webinar, Flex Circuit Presentation Highlight Upcoming Meetings
PCEA in April will host a free webinar titled “Engineered Reliability: Safeguarding Electrical Components and Devices with Nanocoating Technology” by Richard Weiland, director of Nanocoating Applications for HZO Inc.
Thin-film nanocoatings can protect critical electronic circuitry that is used throughout a variety of applications and can be a powerful solution to implement to ensure reliability. Only requiring nanometers- to microns-thin coating, plasma-enhanced nanocoatings are dense, highly cross-linked, multilayer films that create a physical and chemical barrier around components to enable an envelope around the circuitry at a molecular level. The result is dependable functionality in harsh environments that may include moisture, sweat, etc. Plasma-enhanced nanocoatings leverage various liquids and gas chemistries to provide fast deposition cycles that are repeatable and scalable to projects of different sizes, use environments, and performance standards.
Every connected electronic has a unique set of parameters that should be recognized and evaluated to confirm that conformal coating solutions are customized to the application and desired functionality. Whether it’s a specific engineering design, manufacturing limitation, or cost requirement, significant considerations are analyzed before a coating ever reaches an end-product. A vast amount of data regarding conformal coatings, and specifically plasma-enhanced nanocoatings, are available. Fitting the data to an intended purpose, however, can be time-intensive and challenging. In this presentation, Weiland will focus on real-world examples where significant product challenges were presented (such as humidity, temperature, or corrosion) and the investment of time and resources focused on device dependability and functional testing. Data analysis from industry standard testing methodologies as well as application-specific approaches will be presented to demonstrate that nanocoating solutions ultimately provide the protection required for challenging end-use environments encountered during everyday operation.
The one-hour webinar is scheduled for April 25 at 1 p.m. Eastern. To register, visit click here.
Eptech tour. PCEA will cosponsor a guided tour of the Eptech trade show in Toronto on May 9 (eptech.ca/location/toronto/). Ata Syed of PFC Flexible Circuits and Nick Koop of TTM Technologies plan to invite students from various institutes and give a tour of the show from an industry point of view. Contact pcea@pcea.net for details.
EMC control workshop. Rick Hartley will present a two-day workshop on high-speed and EMI control for printed circuit board design in the Atlanta area in early June. Visit pcea.net or pcb2day.com for details.
PCB West. Abstracts were due Feb. 3 for PCB West 2023. We have received 67 abstracts to date for the technical conference. The Conference Task Group will meet this month with the goal to have the program finalized by mid-March. PCB West takes place Sept. 19-22 at the Santa Clara (CA) Convention Center. There is a four-day technical conference of paid and free classes, with a one-day (Sept. 20) exhibition. 
