New plasma process simplifies manufacturing, protects against moisture, salt, corrosion and tin whiskers

Citation

(2013), "New plasma process simplifies manufacturing, protects against moisture, salt, corrosion and tin whiskers", Anti-Corrosion Methods and Materials, Vol. 60 No. 5. https://doi.org/10.1108/acmm.2013.12860eaa.002

New plasma process simplifies manufacturing, protects against moisture, salt, corrosion and tin whiskers

Article Type: Methods From: Anti-Corrosion Methods and Materials, Volume 60, Issue 5

Nano-materials company Semblant Ltd announced it has launched the PlasmaShield™ plasma conformal coat process to deliver the best in class environmental protection without the expense associated with material costs or manufacturing complexity. The PlasmaShield conformal coat process prevents solids and liquids from contacting electronics, protects against vapor damage (moisture, pollutant gasses, salts), and can mitigate tin whiskers.

Semblant’s focus on the electronics industry allows it to deliver the ideal conformal coating solution that addresses the performance needs of military, aerospace and industrial equipment; automotive electronics, medical devices and other traditional high-reliability segments. PlasmaShield also addresses the unmet total manufacturing cost constraints of high-volume electronics manufacturers.

While traditional conformal coats are often plagued by the costs and complexities of manual masking and application processes, Semblant’s plasma deposition process can reduce or eliminate the need to mask sensitive electronics and simplifies the manufacturing process, producing a continuously uniform and pinhole-free coating. Coating continuity is crucial in delivering the best protection against moisture, salts, harmful liquids, destructive gasses, tin whiskers, creep corrosion and other contaminants.

The PlasmaShield plasma deposition of thin coating simplifies rework. Coating removal is no longer required before repairing or replacing components, reducing the risk of damaging the printed circuit board (PCB) during removal process. In addition, concerns related to shelf life, potting life, curing time, and operator safety are eliminated.

The low total manufacturing costs of the PlasmaShield process now enable high-volume electronics manufacturers to incorporate moisture protection. Previously, this segment was unable to broadly adopt traditional conformal coats due to the manufacturing complexity, re-work difficulty and associated manufacturing costs.

Supporting quotes

Steven Lowder, Semblant CEO said “Our PlasmaShield conformal coating process builds on Semblant’s industry-leading plasma deposition process and materials, first offered in our Semblant Plasma Finish (SPF) PCB surface finish. We are excited to add PlasmaShield to our plasma deposition portfolio and the list of breakthrough advances our intellectual property is bringing to the electronics industry”.

Steve McClure, Semblant Vice President of worldwide sales and marketing said “Semblant’s PlasmaShield provides a continuous, uniform coating, critical in delivering the best protection against moisture, salts, tin whiskers, and creep corrosion. By decreasing the need to mask sensitive components, Semblant has greatly reduced manufacturing complexity, redefining how the electronics industry builds high-reliability electronics with improved performance and reduced manufacturing costs”.

More information is available from: www.semblant.com