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www.us-tech.com
Breakthrough in Spray-Coated EMI Shielding
By Shane Ketcham, Applications Engineering Manager, Sono-Tek Corporation W
hile sprayable EMI chemistries have been out for many years, Sono-
Tek was approached by several ink suppliers for a better way to spray. The company saw that both the ink suppliers and cus- tomers had the same underlying issues. They were looking for a spraying technology that could deliver consistent, repeatable re- sults in a production environ- ment.
Sono-Tek has decades of ex-
perience with applications in al- ternative energy where it is often coating challenging materials and medical implants for which consistent results are required.
Ultrasonically Active Atomizer
What makes Sono-Tek’s ap-
proach unique is a completely ul- trasonically active atomizer. Pumping through Teflon tubing
is easy. It’s what happens when materials go through nozzles and are exposed to air where the trouble begins. Sono-Tek’s technology does
not suffer from the shortcomings of spray technologies, such as jet- ting, air atomized spray, or other dispensing methods. Due to the constant ultrasonic energy and unrestricted path through the at- omizer, Sono-Tek’s technolo- gy is non-clogging and does not change the spray charac- teristics over time, due to material buildup. Ultrason- ics offer the additional benefit of a repeatable droplet size and liquid flow for a very consistent coating from part to part and day to day. The company has seen much
overspray. This is due to the very high transfer efficiency of the company’s AccuMist nozzle. The company’s applications
engineering team has also worked directly with ink devel- opers to understand the require- ments for optimal spray charac- teristics, including solids disper- sion, temperature, drying, and depositing multiple layers. Its
What makes Sono-Tek’s
approach unique is a completely ultrasonically active atomizer.
equipment is easily optimized for these coatings and with its cur- rent knowledge base, the compa- ny can quickly get customers what they need in a coating.
interest from large companies that are looking into alternatives to sputtering on EMI layers. Sputtering works well and is es- tablished, but inline spraying with Sono-Tek’s equipment is roughly ten times less expensive than the capital cost for the same parts per hour and a significant reduction in floorspace. This is driving many OSATs and other users of these coatings to look further into next-generation technologies like Sono-Tek’s.
Range of Applications Sono-Tek’s method is sub-
strate agnostic, so it can be used to coat just about anything. Most of the interest so far has been for small ICs that are often mounted to BGAs, but the company can al- so spray coat the inside of large panels for automotive applica- tions, various electronic housings, and any other two- or three-di- mensional substrates. For larger 3D applications, the company typ- ically uses its OmniBot system, which is based on a six-axis robot. Sono-Tek’s capital equip-
DL Technology has been the leader in micro dispensing technology for over 15 years. For more
www.dltechnology.com 216 River Street, Haverhill, MA 01832 • P: 978.374.6451 • F: 978.372.4889 •
sales@dltechnology.com
ment is much more economical and has a smaller footprint than sputtering systems. With re- gards to other spray coating technologies, it will have a simi- lar cost, but based on experience, will be much more repeatable, lower-maintenance, and will have significantly less waste and
Equipment Sono-Tek’s tabletop and
standalone XYZ motion system, the ExactaCoat is a great fit for low-volume or R&D coatings. The FlexiCoat platform is an in- line production system with a conveyor, as well as many op- tions to suit the needs of full scale manufacturing. This is a proven platform that
has been used in high-volume manufacturing for more than 10 years. The OmniBot is the right fit for large 3D parts that must be coated. The ability to customize machine options, quickly adjust process parameters, and easily program coating recipes makes these tools a great solution. Sono- Tek is always engineering solu- tions that are scalable, so that as manufacturers scale up processes, the company is ready to meet their expanding needs. EMI coating is on the
precipice and a few major compa- nies are expected to switch to spray coating over the next 18 months. Once a few start to switch over, the industry will follow quickly. Luckily Sono-Tek is in a position to be able to build sys-
tems quickly to meet the demand. Contact: Sono-Tek Corp.,
2012 Route 9W, Milton, NY 12547 % 845-795-2020 E-mail:
info@sono-tek.com Web:
www.sprayfluxing.com r
Nov/Dec, 2022
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