WESTHAUSEN, GERMANY -- A new PCB etching process uses with ozone to replace hydrogen peroxide used in the etching solution. The invention is said to be environmentally more friendly while also producing traces just 20µm in width.

H2O2 processes are seen as having broad process windows, making etching harder to control.

The new process from AKON tightens the process window and accurately measures the etching solution, resulting in better walls, finer structures and increased signal quality.

AKON's OXIjet technology replaces H2O2 with ozone (O3) using ambient air from a generator. Ozone is introduced into the production cycle directly at the point it is required (in situ). The volume of ozone generated is of the order of a few grams; excess ozone is converted to oxygen in a catalytic converter and discharged back into the air. The new process eliminates H2O2 handling.

"In the electronics industry alone, an annual saving of over 15 million liters of dangerous hydrogen peroxide can be made." said Marcus Lang, AKON's technical director.

"Using this process not only protects the environment but also offers the electronics industry a quantum leap in the reduction in the surface area of printed circuit boards in series production," said managing director Wolfgang Dambacher.

AKON's process has undergone successful beta testing in Europe, the company adds.