Additive PCB Prototyping
Printed circuit board (PCB) prototyping produces small batches of circuit boards to validate designs before mass production. This essential step in electronics development ensures proper component integration, material quality, and optimized performance.
PCB prototyping supports various applications, including microcontrollers, sensors, integrated circuits (ICs), display devices, resistors, capacitors, and connectors. Additive PCB prototyping refers to prototyping PCB boards using additive technologies — building circuits layer by layer using conductive inks and other materials.
- Consumer electronics
- Automotive
- Aerospace
- Healthcare
- Defense
- Silver-based inks
- Carbon-based inks
- Solder paste
- Dielectric inks
- Silver-epoxy adhesives
- FR1
- FR4
- PTFE (Teflon)
- Polyimide/Kapton
- Polyethylene terephthalate (PET)
- Ceramic
Market size and driving forces
The market for electronic prototyping was USD $2.77 billion in 2023 and is projected to reach USD $14.79 billion by 2031, with a compound annual growth rate of 20.60% [1].
Global electronic prototyping market
The rapid growth can be attributed to the following factors [2]:
- Growth in consumer electronics
- Increasing adoption of IoT technologies
- Rising demand for rapid prototyping
Benefits
Researchers[3] have identified the following benefits that additive manufacturing offers, which apply to additive PCB prototyping:
Design freedom
The layer-by-layer process of additive manufacturing enables customizable stacking and fine details for creating complex, multilayer PCB products that may be too intricate for subtractive methods. While current conductive inks do not match the conductivity of traditional copper, their material versatility supports prototyping new electronic devices and advanced, space-saving solutions.
Design freedom
The layer-by-layer process of additive manufacturing enables customizable stacking and fine details for creating complex, multilayer PCB products that may be too intricate for subtractive methods. While current conductive inks do not match the conductivity of traditional copper, their material versatility supports prototyping new electronic devices and advanced, space-saving solutions.
Cost-performance balance
Additive PCB prototyping offers an optimized cost-performance balance by producing less waste. It uses material only where needed, whereas subtractive manufacturing processes cut away significant amounts of bulk material. It also allows for significant weight reduction in parts through topology optimization, which uses materials more efficiently and improves the energy efficiency of the end products.
Cost-performance balance
Additive PCB prototyping offers an optimized cost-performance balance by producing less waste. It uses material only where needed, whereas subtractive manufacturing processes cut away significant amounts of bulk material. It also allows for significant weight reduction in parts through topology optimization, which uses materials more efficiently and improves the energy efficiency of the end products.
Streamlined prototyping process
Additive PCB prototyping eliminates the need for mold making or tooling — creating physical molds or templates for shaping materials — and setup, allowing for direct fabrication from digital designs. Prototyping PCB boards rapidly is crucial for quick in-house testing and iteration, enabling designers to refine PCB layouts efficiently based on real-time feedback. As such, additive PCB prototyping accelerates time-to-market for new electronics, making it invaluable in fast-paced industries.
Streamlined prototyping process
Additive PCB prototyping eliminates the need for mold making or tooling — creating physical molds or templates for shaping materials — and setup, allowing for direct fabrication from digital designs. Prototyping PCB boards rapidly is crucial for quick in-house testing and iteration, enabling designers to refine PCB layouts efficiently based on real-time feedback. As such, additive PCB prototyping accelerates time-to-market for new electronics, making it invaluable in fast-paced industries.
Reduced environmental impact
Traditional PCB prototyping processes, such as chemical etching and milling, generate significant waste and release harmful substances like fiberglass dust and toxic chemicals. In contrast, additive PCB prototyping uses minimal chemicals, which are safely contained (typically in syringes), producing far less waste. Compared to conventional methods, the additive approach is safer and more environmentally friendly for in-house PCB development.
Reduced environmental impact
Traditional PCB prototyping processes, such as chemical etching and milling, generate significant waste and release harmful substances like fiberglass dust and toxic chemicals. In contrast, additive PCB prototyping uses minimal chemicals, which are safely contained (typically in syringes), producing far less waste. Compared to conventional methods, the additive approach is safer and more environmentally friendly for in-house PCB development.
Challenges
To facilitate the wider adoption of additive PCB prototyping, these challenges need to be addressed:
Material compatibility issues
The materials used in additive manufacturing often fall short in terms of conductivity and durability compared to those used in conventional subtractive manufacturing. For instance, 3D-printed PCBs typically achieve only 5%–30% of the conductivity of traditional copper PCBs. This substantial gap can significantly impact the efficiency and reliability of the final products. Although there have been developments like nano copper inks that aim to increase performance, their higher price can be prohibitive.
Material compatibility issues
The materials used in additive manufacturing often fall short in terms of conductivity and durability compared to those used in conventional subtractive manufacturing. For instance, 3D-printed PCBs typically achieve only 5%–30% of the conductivity of traditional copper PCBs. This substantial gap can significantly impact the efficiency and reliability of the final products. Although there have been developments like nano copper inks that aim to increase performance, their higher price can be prohibitive.
Maturity of industrial integration
The relatively recent emergence of additive manufacturing technologies means that standardized processes are still under development, and extensive reliability data is lacking. Layer-by-layer PCB fabrication can introduce defects and inconsistencies that may affect the final product's performance. These factors can impede the integration of additive technology into critical applications requiring high reliability. More investment and research are needed to facilitate the industrial integration of additive manufacturing capabilities with additive prototyping for large-scale PCB production.
Maturity of industrial integration
The relatively recent emergence of additive manufacturing technologies means that standardized processes are still under development, and extensive reliability data is lacking. Layer-by-layer PCB fabrication can introduce defects and inconsistencies that may affect the final product's performance. These factors can impede the integration of additive technology into critical applications requiring high reliability. More investment and research are needed to facilitate the industrial integration of additive manufacturing capabilities with additive prototyping for large-scale PCB production.
Future outlook
Additive PCB prototyping is essential for speeding up innovation. With a growing demand for faster development, advanced tools are needed to make it easier to test ideas and incorporate complex components. Additive PCB prototyping offers rapid iteration, minimizes waste, and supports intricate designs, positioning it as a key driver of future advancements in electronic development.
Our white papers
Printing a Decimal Counter Circuit with Silver Conductive Ink on FR1
Looking to go beyond breadboards? Read how we created a decimal counter with three interconnected circuits to teach the fundamentals of PCB development.
Additional resources
References
[1] Verified Market Research, Global Electronic Prototyping Market Size, 2023.
[2] Market Research Future, Electronic Prototyping Market Research Report, 2024.
[3] Zhang, Z., & Yuan, X. (2022). Applications and future of automated and additive manufacturing for power electronics components and converters, IEEE Journal of Emerging and Selected Topics in Power Electronics, 10(4), 4509–4525..
