Panasonic and AT&S partnership is ALIVH
24 February 2011
anasonic licenses multi-layer resin board ALIVH technology to AT&S
The two companies are collaborating to further develop next-generation circuit board technology.
Panasonic Electronic Devices Co., Ltd., a Panasonic Group company specialised in manufacturing electronic components, and AT&S Austria Technologie & Systemtechnik Aktiengesellschaft, one of the largest PCB manufacturers in the world, have announced that they have reached an agreement, under which Panasonic will license its multi-layer resin board technology called ALIVH (Any Layer Interstitial Via Hole) to AT&S.
The two companies will also build-up collaborative relationships with an aim to developing next-generation circuit board technology in order to accelerate business expansion in mobile devices, such as smartphones.
The global mobile phone market is seeing a dramatic shift to smartphones from regular mobile phones. The introduction of Long Term Evolution (LTE) communication services and the anticipated full-fledged spread of e-books are expected to further spur the growth of the market. High-density and multi-layer circuit boards play a key role in smartphones, which require high-speed processing of ever more increasing amount of signals.
Panasonic's ALIVH multi-layer resin board technology enables an IVH structure in all layers to make PCBs suitable for high-density and multi-layer applications. AT&S is especially well positioned worldwide in the high-tech market segment for HDI micro-via printed circuit boards.
The new technology offers its customers shorter lead time and environmental friendlier processes (less water is needed, as well as power and CO2 savings). The PCBs can become even thinner and enable more complex chip fanouts, in line with customer requirements and the overall trend of miniaturisation. AT&S is also planning to accelerate its growth strategy by making use of the manufacturing improvements offered by ALIVH technology.
ALIVH boards developed and commercialised by Panasonic are the world's first multi-layer resin boards with an IVH structure in all layers. In October 1996, using ALIVH boards, Panasonic (then known as Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.) developed a mobile phone that was the lightest and smallest in the industry at that time, weighing less than 100g. Since then, ALIVH boards have been widely used in Japan and overseas, and the global shipments are expected to exceed 400 million units (in terms of mobile phones) at the end of March 2011.
In Japan, ALIVH PCBs are supplied by Panasonic and CMK Corporation; a major Japanese PCB manufacturer, with which Panasonic formed a business partnership in October 1997.
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