Plastic Metallization

With the help of the 3D-MID process, plastic parts can be metallized not only over the entire surface, but also selectively. To do this, the plastic part is activated with a special laser at the points that are to be coated (this is referred to as laser activation or laser direct structuring). The additives contained in the plastic directly under the plastic surface are “exposed” by the laser treatment. In a chemical bath, copper particles can then be deposited specifically only on the activated surfaces. Other metals, e.g. nickel, tin or gold, can then be deposited onto the starting layer of copper. In this way, a selectively coated plastic part is obtained. MID technology thereby makes it possible to selectively coat two-dimensional and also three-dimensional plastic parts and use them, for example, as circuit carriers for electronic or mechatronic assemblies. With the LPKF-LDS process