Mid Loss Laminates That Outrun Their Price Class
Mid-loss laminates paired with low-roughness copper foil match high-cost ultra-low-loss performance at a fraction of the raw panel price.
Mid Loss Laminates
Substrate Class
High frequency board design requires selecting laminate materials that offer a balance between electrical performance and raw material costs. The mid loss laminates represent a class of substrates with a dissipation factor typically between point zero zero eight and point zero one five, which is lower than standard FR-4 but more economical than ultra-low loss teflon based materials. These laminates are ideal for digital signals operating at frequencies between five and fifteen gigahertz.
Fabricators use them to build multi-layer boards for enterprise servers and networking switches.
Material Application
Signal attenuation in these substrates is low enough to allow trace lengths of up to twenty or thirty inches without requiring expensive signal re-drivers. Materials classified as mid loss laminates use modified epoxy resins blended with polyphenylene ether to improve their electrical properties. This resin formulation provides a lower dielectric constant and a more stable thermal profile than traditional epoxy systems.
This thermal stability prevents impedance drift as the board warms up during operation in enclosed server chassis.
Cost Benefit Ratio
Fabrication compatibility of these materials is a major advantage for board manufacturers. They can be processed using standard multi-layer lamination cycles and chemical desmear lines without requiring specialized tooling. This compatibility allows board shops to produce high performance boards without investing in expensive new manufacturing equipment.