Spring 1993
Copper Etching Economics
Copper etching is very important in the electronics industry,
particularly in the fabrication of printed circuit boards (PCBs).
The thin electrolytic copper foil may be etched by many different
types ofetchant. Historically, the first etchant for copper was ferric
chloride, and it is still used in industry today. However, over the
last two decades, many new etchants have been introduced to the
PCB industry.
In this paper, various copper etchants, their regeneration and
the economics associated with their use will be investigated with
the objective of determining the most cost-effective solution for
the etching of copper in the photochemical machining (PCM)
industry. In this industry, copper has been etched up to a
maximum thickness of 6mm.
David M. Allen and Orhan Cakir, Cranfield Institute of Technology
