Flexible and Rigid-Flexible Printed Circuit Boards

Flexible and rigid-flexible PCBs are easily manufactured in your own electronics lab by LPKF plotters employing non-contact air bearing depth limiter capabilities. This feature makes it possible to machine sensitive materials without coming into direct contact with them.

As the name implies, flexible circuits can twist, bend, fold, and even wrap multiple times within very tight spaces. They can withstand temperature and environmental extremes, making them suitable for rigorous and dynamic applications that might cause a conventional rigid circuit board to fail. Polyimide film-based material is the most popular for producing flexible circuits.

Rigid-flexible boards are a composite of two different materials, such as FR4 for the rigid portion and film-based material for the flexible part. This type of circuit is ideal for applications that require connections from a stationary platform to moving or bending parts.

Example applications for rigid-flexible boards include video cameras, cellular phones, and laptop computers.

Flexible and Rigid-Flexible Board Examples