Electronics 3D printer developer Nano Dimension has filed a patent application with the US Patent and Trademark Office for printing shielded conductors combined in a printed circuit board.
The announcement follows their news on the partnership with 3D printing service FATHOM, who will introduce their Dragonfly 2020 PCB printer to the US market. The recently filed patent presents an innovative solution for electric power loss in PCBs used primarily in the communication industry. Current high speed data transfer requires speeds of 60G to 100G, however, PCBs for this industry suffer from losses between the conductive traces, interfering with the proper function of the electric circuit.
Nano Dimension has developed a proprietary method to create 3D printed built-in sheaths to shield the conductors, just like a form of insulated cable.
The company explains the process in greater detail: By selectively depositing Nano Dimension’s conductive ink, one can build a shield along the entire length of the conductor at a minimal distance. This prevents leakage and loss and is similar to the current practice of using shielded cables with the PCB externally. 3D printing allows the shielded cables to be embedded.
The approach can lead to a reduced size of PCBs used for high speed communication.
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