Hill Technical Sales Blog

If you work in electronic components, you know that electricity generates heat, and that heat can be potentially dangerous to your projects. Over time, without proper thermal management, excessive heat can cause malfunctions, hot spots, solder joint stress, CTE mismatch, or even shock and vibration. So how do we beat the heat? Well, you could use fans, heat sinks, or heat spreaders, but they can be bulky and a hassle. With the move to miniaturized circuits, they might not be a possibility at all for some devices.

So, what can we turn to instead? Thankfully, some new tech has been introduced that is doing wonders for thermal management. A Metal Core Board (MCB), also referred to as a Metal Core Printed Circuit Board (MCPCB) or a thermal Power Core Board (thermal PCB), is a fantastic solution to thermal issues! But what are these new pieces of technology? How do they work? What projects do they work best with? Let’s explore.

What is a Metal Core Board?

To manage all of this heat away from essential parts of devices, we need to figure out where we need to move it to, and how we get it there. MCBs dissipate heat by taking it from the heat source and moving it through a layer of dielectric. It then moves into a metal base and spreads out through it, dissipating the heat.

See the diagram below that shows how a MCB works! This specific example is how it works for LEDs.

The metal base is usually made of aluminum or copper, and each have their own benefits. Aluminum is able to dissipate and transfer heat very effectively and is more lightweight and less corrosive. Copper has a longer lifespan, a higher current carrying capacity, and is more efficient while allowing for a smaller board size.

We use Direct Thermal Exchange (DTE) Technology, which causes quick heat transfer through a DTE pad instead of through the dielectric. With this technology, any metal base thickness or started dielectric (including FR4 Epoxy or polyimide) will work. It eliminates the need for thermal vias and has a high-power capacity and low thermal impedance. It can achieve conduction of 135W to 300W/mk.

What are Metal Core Boards used for?

MCBs are great for LEDs in general. They are useful for LED lighting boards, backlight units, general lighting, and high-power LEDs. For electric and hybrid cars, they are great for electric motor controls. They are efficient in high power supply devices such as DC/DC converters, switching regulators, and voltage regulators. You can also use them for solar panels, solid-state relays, photovoltaic cells, motor drives, RF and wireless applications, and motion control.

MCBs Collection at Hill Technical Sales

We at Hill Technical Sales work with the cooling experts at Electronic Interconnect to provide quality Metal Core Boards. Electronic Interconnect has advantages and advancements for peak performance and reliability such as fantastic solderability, metal cladding, dielectric thickness varieties, and highly productive thermal management. We make use of precise machining tolerances and high-quality fabrication services to assure these boards have faster heat dissipation, reduced energy needs, and long-term board reliability. We also offer counseling services to make sure you get just the board you need to suit your project!

If you would like to inquire about our metal core boards or check out a variety of products that we handle that could suit your needs, please visit our website and submit a quote at https://hill-tech.com/, or contact us at 847-255-4400, fax us at (847) 255-0192, or email us at sales@hilltech.com. And be sure to look at our social media pages, linked below!

Hill Technical Sales provides expert design and implementation of quality components for Electrical Power Conversion & Distribution, Thermal Management, UV Curing, and High-Speed Industrial Imaging for more information:

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