Capabilities: Process

Knowles Precision Devices offers a comprehensive in-house capability for the following processes: CO2 laser drilling, Sputtering, Photolithography, Electroplating, Electroless Ni/Immersion Au (ENIG), AnSn deposition, Resistor laser trim, Diamond saw dicing, packaging.

In addition, Knowles Precision Devices offers tape and real and bulk packaging options, S-Parameter Electrical testing.

  • Substrate material - Knowles Precision Devices stocks the most commonly used substrate materials including Alumina, Aluminum Nitride, High Dielectric Titanates, Quartz, Sapphire and Ferrite.
  • Plated Thru Holes and Filled Vias - Knowles Precision Devices has multiple CO2 lasers to precisely control the drilling process for our via technology. Our Cu filled vias have been space qualified by multiple customers and are widely used to achieve cost effective, high volume designs at a fraction of the cost of Au filled vias. For customers requiring high-quality, Au filled vias for legacy programs or specific design demands, Knowles Precision Devices maintains an internal Au filled via process to meet these demands. Of course, we also provide plated thru holes where via fill is not desired or required.
  • Sputtering - Knowles Precision Devices maintains several, multi-target sputter machines with commonly used metals for quick turn standard delivery without premium. Adhesion metals consist of Ti and TiW as well as Cr, NiCR and TaN. Resistors using TaN and NiCr are standard. Barrier metals consist of Ni and Pd as well as Cr and TiW. Conductors using Cu, Au and Al are all standard. High power conductors using Cu or Au are also available.
  • Photolithography - Approaching the same demanding standard as the semiconductor industry, Knowles Precision Devices has multiple aligners and uses a variety of tooling to manufacture your design to exacting standards. Using a combination of Mylar and Glass tooling, we can manage the cost of non-recurring engineering while still providing features as small as 0.0004" (10 um) to tolerances of ±0.0001".
  • Electroplating - An internal, environmentally friendly electroplating capability offers Knowles Precision Devices the unique advantage of being able to offer conductors without the undercut encountered in typical etch-back processes on thicker metals.
  • Dicing - Knowles Precision Devices has an ever growing dicing capability to provide high volume throughput of parts as small as 0201 devices. Typically a bottleneck in many operations, Knowles Precision Devices has strategically expanded this part of manufacturing to ensure throughput matching the balance of the operation.
  • Packaging - Offering comprehensive packaging options, Knowles Precision Devices has readily available all types of waffle pack, bulk packaging options and tape and reel services to provide your product in the method that best serves your operation.
  • Laser Trim - Multiple laser trimmers for high volume throughput for chip resistors, attenuators and complex circuits. Plunge cut, scan cut, microwave scan cut, ladder networks and "copy trim" are all aspects of laser trim that can be incorporated into a design for tolerances as small as 0.1%.