Polar Instruments’ Speedstack Materials Library extended to include new PCB materials from Ventec Europe

The new library will enable OEM designers and PCB fabricators to assess the impact of Ventec’s wide range of PCB laminates and pre-pregs on the cost, performance and manufacturing yield of high-speed, low-loss PCBs.

The extension of the Speedstack Materials Library is a result of close cooperation between Polar Instruments and Ventec Europe on the continued development of the state-of-the-art technologies and materials for optimising the design and fabrication of high-speed, low-loss PCBs. This combines Ventec Europe’s expertise in PCB laminates and pre-preg bonding materials with Polar Instruments’ knowledge as a global developer and manufacturer of signal-integrity tools.

“The addition of these new materials will help OEMs and PCB fabricators to meet higher-frequency specifications as well as the latest ‘green’ manufacturing targets for telecoms and high-volume consumer products such as mobile handsets,” explains Ventec Europe’s managing director, Mark Goodwin.

Martyn Gaudion, CEO, Polar Instruments, adds; “The continual updating of the Speedstack Materials Library gives users access to accurate information on a comprehensive range of generic and proprietary PCB materials. It also helps global OEMs to ensure that the materials used for prototyping in the US or UK, will be the identical materials used for the ramp-up to full production in Europe or Asia.”

With information on a comprehensive range of materials, Speedstack collates cost and supplier data with design criteria such as the dielectric thickness, transmission line or impedance specifications of different PCB materials. Using the generic materials in the Speedstack Materials Library allows stacks to be designed without specifying a particular material type or manufacturer. This gives PCB fabricators the flexibility to analyse the cost, performance and manufacturing yield for different materials and to identify the optimum materials for each layer in a PCB build. For OEM designers who prefer to specify and control the materials used in the PCB stack-up, the Speedstack Materials Library enables materials to be specified for each layer, and produces accurate and detailed documentation which can be shared at every stage of the PCB supply chain.

Ventec Europe’s products range from standard and high-reliability FR4 to specialist materials for lead-free and halogen-free assembly, as well as for signal-integrity and flex-rigid PCBs; Polar Instrument’s range of signal-integrity tools includes the Speedstack stack-up design system in addition to tools for transmission-line and loss modelling; impedance control and testing.