Panasonic Develops MEGTRON 7 Multi-layer Circuit Board Material with the Industry's Lowest Transmission Loss^*1

Osaka, Japan - Panasonic Corporation today announced that it has developed MEGTRON 7 [1], a multi-layer circuit board material with the industry's lowest transmission loss^*1 [2], which meets the requirements for high-capacity and high-speed transmission of high-end servers, routers, etc., thereby contributing to the improvement of their signal processing performance.

Today, there is a growing need for high-speed processing of large volumes of data to keep up with the spread of information terminals, such as smartphones and tablet PCs, as well as social networking and video sites. To meet this need, high performance servers, routers and other equipment are under development. Playing a central role in such equipment, circuit board materials also require increased capacity and transmission speed, as well as a greater number of layers. Panasonic has succeeded in the development of a multi-layer circuit board material featuring the industry's lowest transmission loss^*1, which contributes to a further increase in capacity and transmission speed.

Features

1. The industry's lowest transmission loss^*1 enables high-speed transmission

Dielectric constant (Dk) [3] = 3.3 (1 GHz)
Dissipation factor (Df) [4] = 0.001, 1/2 vs. Panasonic's previous model^*2 (@ 1 GHz)
Transmission loss: Down by 20% vs. Panasonic's previous model^*2 (@ 12.5 GHz)

2. Circuit board material with high heat resistance and high reliability facilitates the production of circuit boards comprising a greater number of layers

Reflow heat resistance: Passed a 10-cycle test (260°C, 28 layers)
Insulation reliability: Passed a 500-hour test (121°C, 85% RH, 50 V)
Glass transition temperature: 210°C Thermal decomposition temperature: 400°C

Applications

High-end servers, high-end routers, supercomputers, and other ICT infrastructure equipment

Glossary

[1] MEGTRON 7

A new MEGTRON series multi-layer circuit board material developed to achieve high capacity and high-speed transmission for high-end servers, high-end routers, supercomputers, and other ICT infrastructure equipment. MEGTRON is a registered trademark of Panasonic Corporation.

[2] Transmission loss

Attenuation of an electrical signal flowing through a circuit caused by conversion of the signal into heat due to the transmission distance or resistance in the circuit. The amount of loss varies with the characteristics of the conductor (circuit) and the insulator (circuit board material) in contact with the circuit.

[3] Dielectric constant (Dk)

A dielectric constant is a measure of The ease of polarization of an insulating substance when an electric charge is externally applied to The substance. Each substance has its own unique dielectric constant. Substances that are easier to polarize have a tendency to store electricity more easily. Therefore, the use of a substance that is difficult to polarize (i.e. with a low dielectric constant) is effective for ensuring the efficient flow of electrical signals. The Dielectric constant is the ratio of the dielectric constant of a substance to that of a vacuum.

[4] Dissipation factor (Df)

The amount of loss caused when electricity stored by an insulating substance is discharged. The lower the Dissipation factor, the more efficiently the stored electricity is discharged, thereby reducing the electrical signal transmission loss.

About Panasonic

Panasonic Corporation is a worldwide leader in the development and engineering of electronic technologies and solutions for customers in residential, non-residential, mobility and personal applications. Since its founding in 1918, the company has expanded globally and now operates over 500 consolidated companies worldwide, recording consolidated net sales of 7.74 trillion yen for the year ended March 31, 2014. Committed to pursuing new value through innovation across divisional lines, the company strives to create a better life and a better world for its customers. For more information about Panasonic, please visit the company's website at http://panasonic.net/.