PCB Designers Notebook: Benefits of 3-D Array Package Technology

摘要

The designer is regularly asked to put 10 pounds of electronics in the proverbial five-pound bag. With a little help and innovation from component manufacturers, often we succeed. Designers must rely on the supplier's ingenuity for creating smaller-outline IC package solutions for just about every conceivable application. Although many ICs are still furnished in plastic molded lead-frame packages, many have found the ball grid array (BGA) format to achieve smaller package outline, especially for higher I/O devices. They also have proven to be more robust for board-level assembly processing. Furthermore, with all contacts located within the package outline, components can be placed closer together, and interconnecting the devices on the printed circuit board (PCB) can be made more direct.