Any PCB requires protection, which has been a soldering mask for many years. Historically, the mask is green – since the green dye is cheaper in mass production and more pleasant to the eye of employees working at the enterprise.

Now, although the green color of the mask has become traditional, it has become optional and can be replaced with any other – red, blue, white, black, or even purple. From the point of view of the practicality of the finished product, color does not affect anything and is often a marketing move of manufacturers or performs a decorative function.

Therefore, the main task of all manufacturing companies is not the board's appearance but its protective functions, which depend on the methods of applying the mask and the material.

Is it possible to create boards of any color?

The mask is a thinly applied polymer layer of a strictly specified thickness, which is needed to protect the board from various external influences.

Previously, there was no need to cover the board with a protective layer. But since complex soldering methods are now used, and the boards have become more saturated with electronic elements, to avoid short circuits and to protect against the external environment, printed circuit boards need to be covered with a protective polymer layer. In simple words, a soldering mask is a necessary part of the production of printed circuit boards.

This is especially important in producing multilayer printed circuit boards characterized by a high presence of electronic components.

At the same time, the color does not affect the performance or other parameters of the board in any way. Therefore, now they can be created in entirely different colors. In Saifon Technologies, you can order boards of any color.

Colored solder masks of any color have several features, because of which their production is not as convenient as the production of green options.

Disadvantages of color soldering masks

Problems with control

It was revealed that the green color chosen for the plan is the calmest. If the company has visual quality control of the boards, then a different color from the classic green can significantly increase the fatigue of employees. This is especially true for boards that do not contrast with white colors – for example, yellow and white.

It isn't easy to distinguish the conductors and control the quality of such colors. At the same time, colors such as blue or red tire the eye due to brightness. It is essential to understand that if an employee has worked with green printed circuit boards all their life, they will not do the work as well on quality control of boards of any color – from being unaccustomed to it.

Possible loss of quality.

Of course, companies such as Saifon Technologies do not lose quality due to the board's color. Still, many enterprises have debugged the production of standard “greens” - there is always a stock of the proper masks. And as soon as the story begins with the release of color-printed circuit boards, there may be no necessary masks, and the application technology may differ slightly from the standard version. The loss of quality can be especially critical when producing multilayer printed circuit boards.

Problems with the selection of color and shade. As we wrote above, the green classics have been worked out for a long time, and selecting a tone is not difficult. And when it comes to new, previously not used colors, one batch may turn out a little darker, the other – a little lighter. This difference can be very noticeable when comparing the product, especially in red and blue versions.