ENGLISH OVERVIEW
Printed Circuit Boards
Circuits, insulation and connections working together
A PCB combines copper traces, insulating layers, vias and connection interfaces so chips, power and network components can work as designed. One system may contain several board types, including motherboards, accelerator boards and switch line cards.
Inputs versus board categories
CCL, prepreg, foil, imaging resist, wet-process chemicals, solder mask and cutting tools are manufacturing inputs. Multilayer, HDI and flexible boards describe products or technologies.
- Not every board uses every input. Industry links describe roles and do not establish transactions between named companies.
From laminate to interconnected board
Imaging and etching create traces; drilling, metallization, lamination, surface finishing and inspection build the required connections. Stack-up and resin flow affect the final dimensions and impedance.
- A complete PCB is not simply one sheet of CCL.
High-speed performance is a system result
Insertion loss, impedance, crosstalk and via effects depend on materials, routing, connectors and manufacturing tolerances. Layer alignment, yield and heat removal also matter.
- Identify the board location before inferring demand: a package substrate, motherboard and backplane have different requirements.
Companies by industry role
Connected industry roles
Links describe supply, classification, technology or services. They do not establish transactions between individual companies.
Copper-Clad Laminate → Printed Circuit Boards
Copper-clad core material
Board makers process suitable CCL and bonding materials into circuits and multilayer structures; substrates differ by PCB type.
Ventec | Copper-clad laminates, prepregs and laminationPrinted Circuit Boards → Multilayer Rigid PCBs
Structural category
Rigid multilayer boards are a PCB structure; this is classification, not a purchasing relationship.
TTM | Conventional multilayer PCBsPrinted Circuit Boards → High-Density Interconnect PCBs
Interconnect technology category
HDI describes microvias and dense routing and can overlap with high-layer-count designs.
TTM | HDI and microvia technologyPrinted Circuit Boards → Flex and Rigid-Flex PCBs
Mechanical-form category
Flexible and rigid-flex boards are classified by mechanical form, separately from layer count or signal speed.
TTM | Flex and rigid-flex PCBsPrinted Circuit Boards ↔ IC Package Substrates
Adjacent product stages
Both use circuitry, insulation and microvias, but package substrates sit inside chip packages, not at the system-motherboard level.
IBIDEN | IC package substrates, SAP and microviasPrinted Circuit Boards → AI Servers
System-board components
Multiple PCB types support server components and interconnects; board counts and materials depend on the system.
NVIDIA | DGX B200 hardware componentsPrinted Circuit Boards → Network Switches
Board-level circuits
Switches still need power, control and interconnect boards; optical architectures alter some high-speed paths.
Broadcom | CPO and high-speed electrical pathsPrinted Circuit Boards → PCBs for Satellite Communications
Application category
Satellite-communications PCB is an application category that can use multilayer, HDI, rigid-flex or RF technologies, not an exclusive board type.
TTM | Board materials, RF and assembly for commercial spacePrinted Circuit Boards → AI PCs and Workstations
System boards
PC boards connect platforms and peripherals; size, signals and power requirements determine their configuration.
AT&S | Substrate-like PCBs and end applicationsPrinted Circuit Boards → Edge AI Devices
Embedded board interconnects
Edge products use carrier or system boards to connect compute and peripherals; these are not package substrates.
AT&S | Substrate-like PCBs and end applicationsPCB Prepreg → Printed Circuit Boards
Interlayer bonding and insulation
In applicable multilayer lamination, prepreg joins inner-layer boards and copper foil to form the stack.
Ventec | Copper-clad laminates, prepregs and laminationCopper Foil for PCBs → Printed Circuit Boards
Foil for some lamination and build-up processes
Beyond CCL, some multilayer lamination or build-up processes require additional copper foil selected for the actual stack.
Chang Chun | Electronic copper foil and PCB applicationsPCB Wet-Process Chemicals → Printed Circuit Boards
Wet-process chemicals
Serve cleaning, desmear, etching and metallization steps; process chemicals are not necessarily layers remaining in the finished board.
MKS Atotech | Desmear and through-hole metallizationPCB Imaging Resists and Dry Film → Printed Circuit Boards
Imaging and temporary masking
Pattern transfer supports etching or pattern plating, after which the film is stripped at the appropriate step.
Eternal Materials | PCB dry-film photoresistsPCB Solder Mask → Printed Circuit Boards
Permanent board-surface protection
Solder mask leaves pad openings and cures over designated areas; its purpose differs from imaging photoresist.
Taiyo Holdings | Functions of solder-mask materialsPCB Drills and Routers → Printed Circuit Boards
Drilling and profiling consumables
Drills and routers perform machining and do not become part of the board; some microvias instead use laser processing.
Topoint | PCB drills and routersPrinted Circuit Boards → Flight Control Hardware and Software
Control-circuit support
Flight-control hardware combines processors and sensors on circuit boards; no PCB supplier is designated.
Holybro | Pixhawk 6X flight controllerPrinted Circuit Boards → Battery Management Systems and Monitoring ICs
Monitoring and control circuit support
BMS circuits need electrical connections and assembly support; no claim is made that every PCB maker has automotive products or particular customers.
Texas Instruments | Automotive battery-management system designPrinted Circuit Boards → Traction Inverters
Control circuits and connections
PCBs serve control and other circuits; conventional PCBs do not necessarily carry every main power path.
Infineon | Automotive power semiconductors and electric-drive solutionsPrinted Circuit Boards → Power PCBs and copper-clad materials
Power-board application branch
Material, component or system roles; not proof of supply contracts between all representative companies.
Isola | Glass-reinforced epoxy FR-4 laminatesPrinted Circuit Boards → PCB recovery and separation
Boards and production scrap
A role-level PCB waste route, not a contract with a named board maker.
Chinalab | PCB resource recoveryPrinted Circuit Boards → Metal-bearing wastewater recovery
PCB process copper-bearing liquids
An applicable process source, not a contract with a company shown elsewhere.
WASTE Recovery Technology | RecoCell electrowinningInsoluble anodes for PCB plating → Printed Circuit Boards
Anodes for electroplating
Anode supply into plating, not spent titanium mesh sent for recycling.
WASTE Recovery Technology | De Nora anodes and titanium fabricationPrinted Circuit Boards → Motherboards and logic boards
Board-level integration
Product function and industry roles; no company-to-company purchasing contract is asserted.
ASUS | Motherboard specificationsPrinted Circuit Boards → Desktop graphics cards
Graphics-card circuit board
Product function and industry roles; no company-to-company purchasing contract is asserted.
ASUS | Graphics cardsCompany examples & product roles
Lists finished-PCB manufacturers; see the corresponding topics for upstream materials, chemicals and consumables.
Unimicron ↗
PCB manufacturing
Multilayer boards, HDI boards and IC substrates.
Official product / role sourceZDT ↗
PCB manufacturing
Rigid, flexible, HDI, substrate-like and package-substrate products.
Official product / role sourceTripod ↗
Printed circuit board manufacturing
Boards for computing, communications, memory modules, servers and other equipment.
Official product / role sourceTTM Technologies ↗
PCB manufacturing
Conventional multilayer PCBs and other board types developed for specific applications.
Official product / role sourceSources
- IPC | Multilayer PCB fabrication and laminate cores
- IPC | Copper roughness and high-frequency design
- Isola | High-speed stack-up and routing optimization
- TTM | HDI technology overview
- TTM | Computing PCB layer count and process capabilities
- MKS Atotech | Desmear and metallization
- TTM | Flex and rigid-flex PCBs
- IBIDEN | IC substrates, SAP and microvias
- Ajinomoto | ABF build-up insulation
- Ventec | Laminate, prepreg and lamination process guide
- Eternal Materials | PCB photosensitive dry film
- Taiyo Holdings | Solder-resist functions
- Topoint | PCB drills and routers