Feasibility of the 248 nm Excimer laser in the laser structuring of fine circuit lines on printed circuit board

Abstract

Excimer laser (KrF) is used as a new laser source to determine its feasibility in the laser structuring process. Compared with frequency-tripled Nd:YAG lasers, the Excimer laser can conveniently change the spot size of a laser beam to get a smaller sized circuit line/space by inserting a mask. Some frequently used laser parameters of the Excimer laser are discussed in this paper, such as laser energy, number of repetition, repetition rate, bite size and laser beam size. The differences between the Nd:YAG laser and the Excimer laser in laser structuring are also explored in this paper.