Abstract: An improved method of manufacturing fully-additive or partly-additive printed wiring boards by electrolessly depositing copper on an insulating substratum and the walls of plated-through holes, wherein the copper deposit has increased resistance to failure due to thermal stress or thermal cycling. The electroless copper plating bath contains a copper compound, ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid as a complexing agent for copper, a reducing agent capable of reducing the copper compound to metallic copper and addition agents selected from inorganic germanium and silicate compounds and combined with a polyethylene glycol. The pH of the electroless copper bath is monitored and maintained between 11.2 and 12.0 to reduce the trace iron codeposited with the copper and improve the resistance to plated-through hole failure in thermal cycling. The addition of vanadium to the electroless copper bath increases the smoothness of the deposited copper and further increases the number of thermal cycles before failure.

Abstract: The metal (for example, copper) to base material adhesion in an additive printed wiring board is improved by contacting the base material with a solution containing a ureidosilane, preferably also comprising a disilyl crosslinking agent, followed by drying the solution to remove solvent, before contacting the base material with an activating agent for an electroless deposition step. Heating of the board, after the deposition of the metal, for example by baking in an oven or in an autoclave, gives the highest level of adhesion between metal and base material.

Abstract: The adhesion of epoxy-resin containing resist compositions to a copper surface, which resist compositions are exposed to actinic radiation, developed and hardened, is enhanced by contacting the copper surface with an N-heterocyclic compound comprising --NH.sub.2 groups and drying the copper surface comprising the N-heterocyclic compound prior to application of the resist. Printed wiring boards produced by a partially additive process can be produced using this adhesion enhancement technique.

Abstract: This invention concerns a method of manufacturing printed wiring boards by electrolessly plating copper on a precatalyzed base material which contains a polymeric resin, woven glass cloth reinforcement and a noble metal catalyst on clay support to precatalyze the base material for electrolessly depositing copper. The improvement comprises providing in the polymeric resin, a phenolic resin component and a silicate filler. The silicate filler is present in an amount between 30 and 100 part per hundred parts of the polymeric resin, and in an amount sufficient to provide a take time for the initiation of electroless copper deposition at least two times faster than a comparable precatalyzed base material without the silicate filler and phenolic resin.

Abstract: A base material for printed wiring boards is formed by laminating together layers of prepregs of woven cloth impregnated with a thermosetting polymeric resin varnish. The varnish has an inorganic filler which is present in an amount sufficient to provide the base material with an average coefficient of thermal expansion along its Z-axis between 30.degree. C. and 270.degree. C. which is equal to or less than the coefficient of thermal expansion of copper from 30.degree. C. to 270.degree. C. plus the maximum elongation at 270.degree. C. of copper suitable for forming a conductive pattern on hole walls of printed wiring boards. Printed wiring boards manufactured on the base material by additive or subtractive processes are resistant to failure from thermal stress or thermal cycling.

Abstract: An improved method of manufacturing fully additive or partly-additive printed wiring boards by electrolessly depositing copper on an insulating substratum and the walls of plated-through holes, wherein the copper deposit has increased resistance to failure due to thermal stress or thermal cycling. The electroless copper plating bath contains a copper compound, ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid as a complexing agent for copper, a reducing agent capable of reducing the copper compound to metallic copper and addition agents selected from inorganic germanium and silicate compounds and combined with a polyethylene glycol. The pH of the electroless copper bath is monitored and maintained between 11.2 and 12.0 to reduce the trace iron codeposited with the copper and improve the resistance to plated-through hole failure in thermal cycling. The addition of vanadium to the electroless copper bath increases the smoothness of the deposited copper and further increases the number of thermal cycles before failure.

Abstract: An improved method of manufacturing electrolessly deposited copper is described. The copper deposits are useful in the manufacture of fully additive and partly additive plated-through hole, printed wiring boards. The copper is deposited from a bath containing a copper compound, a complexing agent for copper, a reducing agent for copper, a pH-adjusting agent and one or more addition agents. The improvement for producing highly stress resistant, copper deposits comprises controlling one or more plating bath parameters such as pH, complexing agents and sources of iron or chromium, so that the trace iron and/or chromium in the deposited copper is less than 2 mg/mole of copper.

Abstract: Compositions which include an acidified epoxy oligomer, a free radical photoinitiator and a monomer capable of being polymerized by the photoinitiator are used to form aqueous developable, photodefined coatings useful as permanent solder marks for printed circuits and permanent plating resists for additive printed wiring boards. The process for using the compositions include application as a fluid in solvents; drying; exposing to ultraviolet light; developing in an aqueous alkaline solution; and crosslinking the acidified, epoxy oligomers. The articles produced include printed wiring boards with the permanent, photoimaged resist composition thereon.

Abstract: A computer aided design package is used to create a mathematical representation of a three-dimensional object. This object is defined as a set of surfaces oriented in space. A map of the flattened object is created by concatenating selected ones of the surfaces on a single plane. The outline of this map is then used in a computer aided circuit layout package as a printed circuit board on which an electrical circuit is placed and routed. The circuit is translated into a three dimensional form corresponding to the surface of the object by translating and rotating the representation of the object to align each selected surface with the circuit description generated by the circuit layout package. The portion of the circuit corresponding to the surface is then transferred to a three-dimensional data structure having a format that is compatible with numerically controlled machining apparatus. This data structure is used to drive a numerically controlled machine tool that cuts a phototool.

Abstract: Compositions which include an acidified epoxy oligomer, a free radical photoinitiator and a monomer capable of being polymerized by the photoinitiator are used to form aqueous developable, photodefined coatings useful as permanent solder marks for printed circuits and permanent plating resists for additive printed wiring boards.The process for using the compositions include application as a fluid in solvents; drying; exposing to ultraviolet light; developing in an aqueous alkaline solution; and crosslinking the acidified, epoxy oligomers. The articles produced include printed wiring boards with the permanent, photoimaged resist composition thereon.

Abstract: A process for bonding metal directly to thermoplastic polymeric base materials and a process for producing printed circuits from such metal clad thermoplastic polymeric base materials are provided. The invention also includes the articles so produced. Metal clad thermoplastic polymeric base materials are produced by laminating a metal foil or sheet to thermoplastic polymeric base material, under pressure, at a temperature from about 2.degree. C. to about 45.degree. C. above the glass transition temperature (Tg) of the thermoplastic. The polymeric material is free of volatile materials such as moisture or solvents when laminated.

Abstract: In a system for determining the relative position of a first object with respect to a second object, electrical detection of registration is achieved. This registration can be used during the manufacture of printed circuit boards or discrete wiring boards to determine the registration between layers of wiring, or between wiring layers and printed circuit layers. The system introduces an a.c. current at a suitable frequency into at least one first conductive pattern wired or etched or otherwise provided near the perimeter of a printed or wired first layer of a circuit board panel. The panel having the first pattern is moved relative to similarly wired second conductive patterns on a second layer or base plate, mounting table, etc., to which detection circuits are connected. Voltage induced in the second patterns is detected and indicates the positional relationship between the first and second conductive patterns and, hence, objects associated with such patterns.

Abstract: Non-metallic articles are sensitized for deposition of adherent metal from electroless metal solutions in contact therewith by treatment with a first medium including a compound or combination of compounds containing an element which in one of its states is catalytically active to electroless metal deposition thereby adsorbing on the surface in situ the elemnt(s) and/or compound(s); thereafter treating the surface with a second medium to decrease the solubility of the compound or combination of compounds and/or simultaneously removing the excess; and simultaneously or subsequently, if necessary, treating the surface with one or more agents to transfer said element(s) into a catalytically-active state.