Section
Category: PCB & PCBA
Stackups, finishes, assembly, and the difference between ordering a bare board and a tested assembly.
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Rigid, flexible, and rigid-flex: which board survives the bend
A flex circuit is polyimide with copper and coverlay. Rigid-flex combines both in one construction. A rigid board with a wire is often the cheaper answer.
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PCB or PCBA: which one should the purchase order name?
A PCB is the bare board. A PCBA is that board with parts soldered, inspected, and usually tested. The files and the risks are different.
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How to specify a PCB so the factory builds the board you designed
Layer count, copper weight, finish, and IPC class decide cost and yield. Here is the short list a fabricator actually needs.