IPC - Association Connecting Electronics Industries® has just released revision C of IPC-4101, Specification for Base Materials for Rigid and Multilayer Printed Boards. Covering the requirements for base materials used primarily in rigid and multilayer printed boards for electrical and electronic circuits, the new C revision adds 11 new specification sheets to reflect the expanded offerings for current commercially available laminates and prepregs.

The new specification sheets add laminate and prepreg materials with improved or additional properties for use in one or more of the following applications: low halogen, lead free, high thermal performance and high speed/high frequency performance.

"We've gone well beyond the vanilla option of materials to give our industry guidance with respect to the heightened demands in performance and applications," said Tony Senese, OEM Business Development Manager, Panasonic Electric Works, and chair of the 3-11 Laminate/Prepreg Materials Subcommittee, responsible for the standard. "The specification sheets now cover a much broader range--from low halogen materials which are, for the most part, duplicates of the high performance FR-4 materials with higher Tg, to specification sheets for materials on the less demanding end of the spectrum."

In total, 66 individual specification sheets are contained in IPC-4101C which can be searched using keywords. The keywords allow the document's user to easily find  groups of materials with common characteristics but with enough specific properties that allow them to fine-tune their laminate and/or prepreg search.

The document has also gained significant interest and support from the industry worldwide. "Thanks to significant efforts from the 3-10 Printed Board Base Materials Committee Chair Doug Sober, IPC-4101C has now truly become a global document, within Europe and Asia as well as North America," commented Senese.

Senese also thanks all volunteer members of the 3-11 subcommittee for their contributions, "This was an important update to get out to our industry as soon as possible and our group worked diligently to make it happen. Their efforts enabled a rapid consensus and revision process."

More information on IPC-4101C, Specification for Base Materials for Rigid and Multilayer Printed Boards, is available in the IPC online bookstore at www.IPC.org/onlinestore. Questions should be directed to the 3-11 Subcommittee staff liaison, Tom Newton, IPC Director of PCB Programs, Standards and Technology, at +1 847-597-2849.        

About IPC

IPC is a global trade association based in Bannockburn, Illinois, dedicated to the competitive excellence and financial success of its 2,700 member companies which represent all facets of the electronics industry, including design, printed board manufacturing, electronics assembly and test. As a member-driven organization and leading source for industry standards, training, market research and public policy advocacy, IPC supports programs to meet the needs of an estimated $1.7 trillion global electronics industry. IPC maintains additional offices in Taos, New Mexico; Arlington, Virginia; Garden Grove, California; Stockholm, Sweden; Moscow, Russia; and Shanghai and Shenzhen, China. For more information, visit www.ipc.org.