Ralf Schwartz, Managing Director, Lackwerke Peters GmbH & Co. KG

Positioning Uyemura for success in this new decade has meant focusing on four significant trends. Increasing demand for gold deposits of 4-6 µin for ENIG and ENEPIG led to our development of RAIG, Reduction-Assisted Immersion Gold.

Marketed as TWX-40, RAIG is 4552-compliant, with a wide operating window. This stable bath employs immersion and autocatalytic (electroless) gold deposition; its autocatalytic aspect means gold is deposited directly on the underlying metal without displacement of the base metal. TWX-40 preserves nickel integrity and provides consistent gold plating independent of pad sizes, surface geometry or residual capacitance potential.

Trend #2 is the growth of HF applications and other designs with tight spacing. Uyemura's EPIG nickel-free finish has opened up a wide, new design avenue these applications. EPIG deposits palladium directly onto copper. Eliminating nickel means less build-up on circuits - one reason it's an excellent option for applications demanding smaller features and clearances.

Trend #3 is the heightened demand for expert field service. The demand for highly knowledgeable technical sales and service people has increased substantially. Having highly experienced people ready to respond to any customer need is foundational for us, and this trend has been a major contributor to our growth.

The fourth trend is the desire among shops to update their line so it can process all the "big 3" final finishes: ENIG, ENEPIG and EPIG. Thanks to the exceptional development team at our Connecticut Tech Center, we have perfected a "zero downtime" protocol for converting an existing line into one that does just that.

Now, shops and OEMs have the option to deposit heavier gold and meet IPC4552, with just chemical modifications. So the finer geometries required by higher signal speed are achievable, and customers can pursue new business opportunities - and be ready for what's next on our industry's ever-evolving horizon.