If both corporations and consumers believe that their worlds are becoming more high-tech, then public sector entities and military organizations have reached unthinkable levels of technological sophistication. This is obvious for some - technologies such as mobile phones, the Internet of Things and even the Internet were all founded with military applications in mind. In that regard, it's clear that printed circuit boards have been and will continue to be one of the most important components of military technologies. And since that is the case, the performance of PCBs matters more than ever for military organizations.
For today
PCBs play a role in all forms of military operations, contributing to technologies that support communication, surveillance, warfare and much more. It's no surprise then that military organizations demand the best performance from their PCBs. The defense of the nation is on the line and, in many cases, as are the lives of both civilians and armed service members.
For example, today's military relies greatly on wireless communication. In the past, before advanced tools were a fundamental component of operations, passive intermodulation wasn't a concern and therefore PCBs didn't need too much attention. Now, however, Michael Miller of Isola Group explained that PCB manufacturers must use new materials to improve PCB performance and prevent PIM, according to Military Embedded Systems. If they don't, communication devices will have too short of ranges and a propensity for crashing.
"Tomorrow's military equipment must be 'smaller, faster, lighter.'"
For tomorrow
Military technologies must improve every day in order for this nation to stay on top of a variety of threats. Specifically, organizations are working on wearable devices, drones and other robotic or auxiliary tech. Therefore, according to New Electronics, Roy Phillips, managing director of Intelliconnect, explained that tomorrow's military equipment must be "smaller, faster, lighter." This means that PCB performance needs to continually meet new standards, and the advancement of technology in that regard relies on PCBs working 24/7.
In fact, PCBs are becoming so much better so quickly that some new technologies are almost 100 percent circuit board. Defense News reported on the Cicada, a prototype miniature military drone, that the source called "a paper airplane with a circuit board" since it consists of only 10 different pieces, the largest besides the hull being the circuit board. The Cicada demands the best PCBs, given that it must fly as far as 11 miles with no engine, perform surveillance with magnetic sensors and send video feeds back to headquarters.
The U.S.'s military operations of today and tomorrow both heavily rely on the optimal performance of PCBs. It's simply an aspect of PCB manufacturing that organizations cannot forget.