Electronics: PCB Technology
What does the future hold for PCB technology? While electrical engineers the globe over are experimenting with new material sciences techniques and new advanced methods of mass fabrication, the real action is at the design level. Big manufacturers are constantly developing techniques to engineer circuits on the micro and nano levels. These techniques are becoming more and more mainstream.
Of course, the most advanced and cost effective engineering methods are still proprietary. Thus, whats happening is that many engineering firms are developing similar methodologies simultaneously and not sharing information. Eventually, at least according to some industry watchers, many of these techniques will become common knowledge. Once we get passed this so-called tipping point, many exotic and diverse kinds of PCB fabrications will emerge.
Thinking about the Future of PCB Tech
What will the new PCB technology look like? On the one hand, we will likely find similar design layouts and electronic schematics. On the other hand, manufacturing methods will likely change significantly, at least cosmetically. For instance, nowadays, manufacturers build PCBs by exposing photo-resistant film over copper plates and then etching the unexposed copper away to create wires in the board.
In the future, manufacturers may indeed be able to grow boards using automated processes. Indeed, some biotechnical experts are already experimenting with using DNA as a circuit making material. Although the results of these experiments are somewhat inconclusive, it seems inevitable, at least according to many futurists, that experiments in biology will have real and usable implications for electrical engineering.