How does the cost of Thermal Clad compare to that of FR4?
The simple answer is: it doesn’t! To make a true and useful cost comparison, one should compare the costs of FR-4: • plus heat sink • plus device mounting hardware (such as clip, screw or clamp) • plus interface (Sil-Pad) • plus the cost of manual assembly versus the Thermal Clad automated surface mount assembly. Taking into consideration all relevant costs, Thermal Clad system is lower overall when comparing it to a traditional printed circuit board (PCB) and heat sink assembly.
