Technical Articles From The Bergquist Company

Optimizing the Insulated Metal Substrate Application with Proper Material Selection and Circuit Fabrication

Oct 15, 2015 | Dave Sommervold, Chris Parker, Steve Taylor, Garry Wexler

The ever expanding growth in the use of insulated metal substrates (IMS) in power electronics requires a focus on material and mechanical configuration for each application. By optimizing the material makeup and printed board format, performance and reliability expectations can be further achieved. The thermal performance and electrical isolation needs are driven by the power requirements, but considerations of temperature range, mechanical durability and format, along with the physical package surrounding the substrate must also be managed. With a variety of material configurations and circuit format capabilities, the choices become a balancing of options to maximize performance and minimizing cost through Design For Manufacturability (DFM) in the circuit board fabrication. These challenges present the IMS printed board fabricator with material selections and fabrication processes unlike those for other printed board or ceramic applications....