Why do PCB circuit boards need to be gold-plated and gold-plated

The main reasons for the immersion and gold plating treatment of PCB circuit boards are as follows:

1. Improve conductivity

Gold and nickel gold alloys have excellent conductivity, which can significantly reduce resistance and signal transmission losses, especially in high-frequency circuits, and can reduce the impact of skin effect on signal quality.

2. Prevent oxidation and corrosion

Gold and nickel gold layers have extremely strong oxidation resistance, which can effectively resist copper layer oxidation and extend the service life of PCB.

3. Enhance welding reliability

The nickel gold layer formed by the immersion gold process is more firmly bonded to the copper layer, making it less prone to detachment during welding and reducing the risk of virtual welding.

4. Improve surface smoothness

Sinking gold and gold plating can fill small defects on the surface of copper layers, improve PCB flatness, and facilitate precision component mounting.

5. Extend the standby life

Gold plated plates have a longer storage time when not in use, making them suitable for trial production stages or high-density component mounting that require long-term storage.

6. Process differences

Sinking gold: Only covering the nickel gold layer in the pad area, the combination of circuit solder mask and copper layer is more stable, stress control is better, and suitable for bonding processing.

Gold plating: covering the entire surface of the PCB, but prone to gold wire short circuit problems, suitable for low-density mounting scenarios.