Current carrying capacity of copper conductors in printed wiring boards

Author

Pan, Tsung-Yu ; Poulson, Russell H. ; Blair, Howard D.

Author_Institution

Ford Motor Co., Dearborn, MI, USA

fYear

1993

fDate

1-4 Jun 1993

Firstpage

1061

Lastpage

1066

Abstract

The effect of thermal management of the copper conductors on PWBs (printed wiring boards) having different dimensions and arrangements is discussed. Design charts have been generated to include the parameters of conductor thickness from 1 to 3 oz, width from 5 to 20 mils, spacing at 8 mils, board thickness from 31 to 62 mils, input current, and temperature rise up to 50°C. The analysis is based on finite element modeling with a heat transfer film coefficient obtained from infrared thermal imaging analysis of a test board. Of all the geometric parameters considered, conductor width and spacing are the primary parameters influencing thermal resistance. Conductor thickness is next, and board thickness proves to be the least sensitive parameter

Keywords

conductors (electric); copper; finite element analysis; infrared imaging; packaging; printed circuit design; printed circuit testing; temperature distribution; thermal resistance; 31 to 62 mil; 5 to 20 mil; Cu; PWB; board thickness; conductor spacing; conductor thickness; conductor width; copper conductors; current carrying capacity; design charts; finite element modeling; geometric parameters; heat transfer film coefficient; infrared thermal imaging analysis; printed wiring boards; thermal management; thermal resistance; Conductors; Copper; Finite element methods; Image analysis; Infrared heating; Temperature; Thermal conductivity; Thermal management; Thermal resistance; Wiring;

fLanguage

English

Publisher

ieee

Conference_Titel

Electronic Components and Technology Conference, 1993. Proceedings., 43rd

Conference_Location

Orlando, FL

Print_ISBN

0-7803-0794-1

Type

conf

DOI

10.1109/ECTC.1993.346704

Filename

346704