Hello everyone..... One of the varied managers that I have to work for has asked me the question of; "Why do you need to have a 1mm gap between SMT component pads?" "Can you get the components any closer?" My default placement outline on SMT components is 0.5mm (making 1mm when side by side), and placing components this spaced works fine, but when you take apart a mobile phone & see the placement on it we have to wonder if we can go closer? I'm sure that this is something that I have seen in the varied publications that I have read, something to do with preventing solder theft, thermal dissipation, preventing the placement machine hitting adjacent components etc Now as my reply determines the component pitch on what will be one of our highest volume boards, I'd like to formulate a very technical reply.... So have you folks got any good comments on why? What can happen if I place them closer? How close can I place components these days? Incidentally we use Quad QSV1000 P&P and Reflow oven. Many thanks... Matthew Lamkin Printed Circuit Board Draughtsman Protec Fire Detection PLC. Churchill Way, Nelson, Lancashire, England. U.K. BB11 5JU. TEL 01282 717393 FAX 01282 717273 email mailto:[log in to unmask] (please always use this email address when replying to any of my messages.) The E-mail and any attachments hereto are strictly confidential and intended solely for the addressee. If you are not the intended addressee please notify the sender by return and delete the message. You must not disclose, forward or copy this E-mail or attachments to any third party without the prior consent of the sender. In addition, any opinions expressed in this E-mail are solely that of the sender and must not be taken as that of the senders employer. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DesignerCouncil Mail List provided as a free service by IPC using LISTSERV 1.8d To unsubscribe, send a message to [log in to unmask] with following text in the BODY (NOT the subject field): SIGNOFF DesignerCouncil. To set a vacation stop for delivery of DesignerCouncil send: SET DesignerCouncil NOMAIL Search previous postings at: www.ipc.org > On-Line Resources & Databases > E-mail Archives Please visit IPC web site (http://www.ipc.org/html/forum.htm) for additional information, or contact Keach Sasamori at [log in to unmask] or 847-509-9700 ext.5315 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------