Technical terms that are frequently used in the Printed Circuit Board manufacturing industry.

To simplify communication Eurocircuits uses abbreviations for many of these technical terms. Most of the technical terms and abbreviations are international standards in the Printed Circuit Board manufacturing industry. However to make it clear to everyone involved, we here present a list of technical terms and abbreviations along with their explanation.

A   B   C   D   E   F   G   H   I   J   K   L   M   N   O   P   Q   R   S   T   U   V   W   X   Y   Z

SECTION B

TERM
ABBr.
USED
Short Description
Supporting Documents

BARE BOARD TESTING

BBTPCBElectrical testing of the non-populated PCB.Bare Board Testing

BLIND and BURIED VIA HOLES

PCBA blind via connects an Outer Layer (OL) to one or more Inner Layers (IL) but does not go through the entire board.

A buried via connects two or more Inner Layers (IL) but does not go through to an Outer Layer (OL).

Blind and Buried Via

Blind and Buried Via’s Blog

BOARD PRICE

PCBThe price includes the price for the PCB’s selected in the calculatorBoards Price

BOARD SURFACE

PCBThe board surface area expressed in dm².Board Surface

BOARD THICKNESS

PCBThe thickness given in mm based on the base materials used including copper foil.Board Thickness

BOTTOM

PCBBottom side of the PCB.Bottom side of the PCB

10 Rules for Better Data

BUILDUP

PCBDefined build of a PCB such as number of layers an their sequence.PCB or Board Buildup

Buildup Editor User Guide


SECTION C

Definition
ABBR.
USED
Short Description
Supporting Documents

CARBON CONTACTS

PCBCarbon ink normally used for keyboard contacts, LCD contacts and jumpers.Carbon Contacts

CHAMFERED MECHANICAL or COUNTERSUNK HOLES

PCBA bevelled edge of a holes usually at 45 degrees.Chamfered Mechanical Holes or Countersunk Holes

COPPER

CuPCBCu is the chemical abbreviation for copperCu -Copper

COPPER FOIL

PCBCopper foils is the base copper thickness applied on outer and inner layers.Copper Foil

PTH process video

COPPER UP TO THE BOARD EDGE

PCBCopper is placed up to the very edge of the board contour.Copper up to the Board Edge

Copper and the Board Edge – Blog

CORE

PCBA rigid base material laminate with copper on one or two sides.Core or Rigid Copper Laminated Base Material

PCB Multilayer Fabrication – Lay-up and Bond


SECTION D

Definition
ABBR.
USED
Short Description
Supporting Documents

DELIVERY FORMAT

PCB

ASSY

The method in which you ask Eurocircuits to produce and delivery your PCB design.Delivery Format

Guidelines for customers that opt for the Eurocircuits standard panel

DELIVERY TERM

ALLNumber of days required to manufacture.Delivery Term

DEPTH ROUTING

PCBRemoving a specific area of the Outer Layer of the PCB to a specific depth.Depth Routing


SECTION E

Definition
ABBR.
USED
Short Description
Supporting Documents

eC REGISTRATION COMPATIBLE

PCBPCB’s or Customer Panels that have the necessary Tooling Holes to be used with the Eurocircuits eC-stencil-mate or eC-stencil-fix equipment.eC-Registration Compatible

More on eC-registration

EDGE CONNECTOR BEVELING

PCBReduce the square edge of the connector to a sloping edge to ease entry in to the socket.PCB Design Guidelines – Edge Connectors

Edge Connector Bevelling

EDGE CONNECTOR GOLD SURFACE

PCBA layer of gold plated to the fingers of the edge connector.Edge Connector Gold Surface

Gold Plating for Edge Connectors

Electroless Nickel Immersion Gold

Che Ni/Au or ENIGPCBENIG (Electro less Nickel Immersion Gold), also called Che Ni/Au, (Chemical Nickel Gold) or also known as soft gold.Ch Ni/Au or ENIG (Electroless Nickel Immersion Gold)

Soldermask on via-holes in case of chemical Nickel-Gold surface finish

EXTRA PRESS CYCLES

PCBWhen producing multi-layers with blind and buried via holes, additional Press Cycles may be required.Extra Press Cycles

EXTRA PTH RUN

PCBWhen producing multilayers with blind and buried via holes, the panel may need to pass through the galvanic plating process multiple times.Extra PTH run


SECTION F

Definition
ABBR.
USED
Short Description
Supporting Documents

FIDUCIAL

PCB

ASSY

An Ooptical target.Fiducial

FINISHED HOLE SIZE

PCBThe finished hole size or ENDHOLE is the diameter that the PCB designer specifies in his PCB layout.Finished Hole Size

FR4

PCBFiberglass reinforced epoxy laminates that are Flame Retardant.FR4 Quality – What to Expect

How Often Can You Raise a Eurocircuits PCB to Lead-free Soldering Temperature


SECTION G

Definition
ABBR.
USED
Short Description
Supporting Documents

GLASS TRANSITION TEMPERATURE

TgPCBTg (Glass Transition Temperature) is one of the parameters of a base materials.Tg – material Tg

GROSS PRICE

ALLThe price including VATGross Price


SECTION H

Definition
ABBR.
USED
Short Description
Supporting Documents

HEATSINK PASTE

PCBA paste used too fill via holes that are designed for Thermal dissipation.Heatsink Paste

HOLE DENSITY

PCBThe number of holes per dm² of the board surface.Hole Density

HOT AIR LEVELLING

HALPCBHot Air Levelling using lead free tin (Sn)HAL Lead-Free


SECTION I

Definition
ABBR.
USED
Short Description
Supporting Documents

INNER

ILPCBThe Inner Layer of the PCB.INNER Layer

Suggestions for Naming Your CAD-Data-Files

INNER LAYER ANNULAR RING

IARPCBInner Layer Annular RingIAR – Inner Annular Ring

INNER LAYER PAD INSULATION

IPIPCBInner Layer Pad InsulationIPI – Inner Layer Pad Insulation


SECTION L

Definition
ABBR.
USED
Short Description
Supporting Documents

LAYER

PCBIndividual layer of a PCB.Layer of the Printed Circuit Board

LEAD FREE FINISH

PCB

ASSY

Final finish applied to the soldering areas of the PCB to prevent oxidation and to them easier to solder.Any Lead Free Finish

Which surface finish fits your design

LEAKAGE

PCBA type of short, sometimes referred to as a high-resistance short.Leakage

LEGEND

PCBText printed on top of the Soldermask. Also known as silkscreen,Legend


SECTION M

Definition
ABBR.
USED
Short Description
Supporting Documents

MICRO SECTION of a PTH

PCBA cross section of a PTH Hole.Micro section of a PTH

MILLING

PCBUsed to form the contour of the PCB’s or panels.Milling

Slots and Cut-outs


SECTION N

Definition
ABBR.
USED
Short Description
Supporting Documents

NET PRICE

ALLThe price excluding taxes or VAT.Net Price


SECTION O

Definition
ABBR.
USED
Short Description
Supporting Documents

OPEN

PCBA discontinuity or non-connection within a net.Open

ORDER SURFACE

PCB

ASSY

The total delivered PCB surface area of your order expressed in dm².Order Surface

OUTER

PCBThe Outer Layer(s) of the PCB either the TOP or BOTTOM side.Outer Layer

Suggestions for naming your CAD data files

OUTER LAYER ANNULAR RING

OARPCBOuter Layer Annular RingOAR – Outer Annular Ring


SECTION P

Definition
ABBR.
USED
Short Description
Supporting Documents

PAD to PAD SPACING

PPPCBThe Pad to Pad spacing specified in mmPP – Pad to Pad

PANEL BORDER

PCB

ASSY

Extra material around your PCB or multiple PCB’s to form a Customer Panel.Panel border of a Customer Panel

Customer Panel Guidelines

PANEL CROSS OUTS

PCB

ASSY

A Panel where defective PCB’s have been visually crossed out.Panel without Cross Outs

Panel Editor

PANEL OUTLINE

PCB

ASSY

The required contour of a Customer Panel.Panel Outline

PANEL SPACING

PCB

ASSY

The PCB Spacing defines the extra space you want between different PCB’s on the Customer Panel.

PCB SEPARATION METHOD

PCBPre-cut the boards in a Customer Panel for easy removal after assembly.PCB separation method – on a Customer Panel

Panel instructions – V-cut basics

PEEL-ABLE MASK

PCBAlso know as Peel-off Mask is a protective coating that can be easily removed.Peelable Mask

PLATED HOLES ON THE BOARD EDGE

PCBPlated through holes in the edge of the board.Plated Holes on the Board Edge

Copper and the Board Edge

PLATING INDEX

PIPCBThe density of the Copper distribution.Plating Index

Plating Simulation – our New Tool for PCB Designers

Plating Index Solutions

PREPREG

PCBAn unpressed base material without any copper foil.Prepreg or Unprocessed Copper Free Base Material

PCB Multilayer Fabrication – Lay-up and Bond

PRESS-FIT HOLES

PCBHoles designed for the press fit of component leads, usually connectors.Press-Fit Holes

PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARD

PCBPCBPrinted Circuit Board (also know as “the board”).Printed Circuit Board

Tolerances on PCB

PRODUCTION HOLE DIAMETER or TOOLSIZE

PHDPCBThe diameter of the tool used in production to drill the hole.PHD – Production Hole Diameter


SECTION R

Definition
ABBR.
USED
Short Description
Supporting Documents

ROUND EDGE PLATING

PCBThe edge of the board is plated with copper and then the final finish such as HAL.Round Edge Plating

Copper and the Board Edge


SECTION S

Definition
ABBR.
USED
Short Description
Supporting Documents

SHIPMENT DATE

ALLThe date on which the order is shipped.Shipment Date

Info on Shipping

SHORT

PCBAn electrical connection between two or more nets or isolated points that should not be connected.Short

SINGLE PCB or SINGLE PANEL PRICE

PCB

ASSY

The price for one unit of the delivery format chosen in the calculator.Single PCB or Single Panel Price

SOLDERMASK

SMPCBA protective layer of liquid photo image able lacquer applied on the TOP and BOTTOM side of a Printed Circuit Board.SM-Soldermask

SPECIFIC MARKINGS

PCBCustomer specific markings such as logo, name, date code etc…Specific Marking

Marking Editor

SPECIFIC TOLERANCES

PCBTolerances that are required to meet specific design goals and are not within the latest Industrial Standard IPC A-600 (x) Class II.Specific Tolerances

STENCIL

PCBStainless Steel template for applying Solder paste onto the board.Stainless Steel template for applying solder paste onto the board

Laser stencil production video

Use of screen printer video

How to Order a Stencil?

SURFACE MOUNT DEVICE

SMDASSYSurface mounted Device.Surface Mount Device


SECTION T

Definition
ABBR.
USED
Short Description
Supporting Documents

THROUGH HOLE

THPCBA hole that goes through the PCB from the Top Layer through to the Bottom Layer.NPTH – Non Plated Through Hole and PTH – Plated Through Hole

PCB Design Guidelines – Drilled Holes

TOP

PCB

ASSY

Top side of the PCB.Top side of the PCB

10 Rules for Better Data

TOTAL PRICE

ALLThe price for all selected items.Total Price
Info on Invoicing and Payment

TRACK to PAD SPACING

TPPCBThe Track to Pad spacing is specified in mmTP – Track to Pad

TRACK to TRACK SPACING

TTPCBThe Track to Track spacing specified in mmTT – Track to Track

TRACK WIDTH

TWPCBThe Track Width is specified in mmTW – Track Width

PCB Classification for Pattern and Drill Class


SECTION U

Definition
ABBR.
USED
Short Description
Supporting Documents

UNDERWRITERS LABORATORY MARKING

ULPCB

ASSY

The Underwriters Laboratory (UL)UL Marking

What about UL ?


SECTION V

Definition
ABBR.
USED
Short Description
Supporting Documents

VIA HOLES

PCBA hole that creates an electrically connected through the PCB.Via Hole

PCB Design Guidelines – Drilled Holes

VIA FILLING

PCBThe filling of Via Holes with ResinPCB Design Guidelines – Via Filling

What is Via Filling

IPC-4761 Via Protection Type Classification


SECTION W

Definition
ABBR.
USED
Short Description
Supporting Documents

WARP and TWIST

PCB

ASSY

The distortion of the PCB.Warp and Twist

Bow and Twist in Printed Circuits