Dielectric and Magnetic Properties of Printed Wiring Boards and Other Substrate Materials

Published

March 1, 1999

Author(s)

James R. Baker-Jarvis, Billy F. Riddle, Michael D. Janezic

Abstract

This is an overview of dielectric and magnetic material measurements on printed wiring board and substrate materials. The most commonly used methods are presented. We begin with an overview of pertinent properties of circuit-board and substrate materials. We overview cavity and dielectric resonators, reentrant cavity, full-sheet resonance, coaxial probe, stripline, and capacitive methods. The frequency range of applicability and typical uncertainties associated with the methods are summarized. It is found that the reentrant cavity is useful for both loss and dielectric constant determination for materials of thickness greater than one-half millimeter. It is concluded that the full-sheet resonance technique is useful for the determination of the real part of the permittivity of clad substrates, but not for the loss measurement. Dielectric resonator techniques achieve the greatest sensitivity for both permittivity and loss. However, many printed wiring board materials are too lossy to achieve a resonance. We also present measurements of many substrate materials.

Citation

Technical Note (NIST TN) - 1512

Report Number

1512

Volume

1512

NIST Pub Series

Technical Note (NIST TN)

Pub Type

NIST Pubs

Keywords

dielectric, dielectric, full-sheet, loss factor, microwave, permittivity, printed-wiring, resonance, stripline

Citation

Baker-Jarvis, J. , Riddle, B. and Janezic, M. (1999), Dielectric and Magnetic Properties of Printed Wiring Boards and Other Substrate Materials, Technical Note (NIST TN), National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD (Accessed May 12, 2025)