IPC-7525C

IPC-1401
®

Stencil Design Guidelines

Supply Chain Social
Responsibility Management
System Guidance

Developed by the Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability in

the Supply Chain in China Subcommittee (4-35cn) of the Environment,
Health & Safety Steering Committee (4-30) of IPC

Developed by the members of the Solder Stencil Task Group (5-21e) of

the Assembly & Joining Committee (5-20) of IPC.
This IPC international standard was developed by the IPC Corporate
Social Responsibility and Sustainability in the Supply Chain in China
Task Group (4-35cn) in its native language and was translated to English
for peer review and publication. The Mandarin version (IPC-1401 CN)
represents the primary language.

Supersedes: Users of this publication are encouraged to participate in the

IPC-7525B - October 2011 development of future revisions.

Contact:

IPC
3000 Lakeside Drive, Suite 105N
Bannockburn, Illinois
60015-1249
Tel 847 615.7100
Fax 847 615.7105
November 2021 IPC-7525C

Table of Contents
1.0 SCOPE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 1.8.25 Transfer Efficiency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.1 Purpose . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 1.8.26 Ultra-Fine Pitch Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.2 Classification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 2.0 APPLICABLE DOCUMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.3 Measurement Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 2.1 IPC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.4 Definition of Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
3.0 STENCIL DESIGN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.5 Order of Precedenc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
3.1 Stencil Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.5.1 Conflict . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
3.1.1 Data Format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.5.2 Clause References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
3.1.2 Gerber® Format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.5.3 Appendices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
3.1.3 Aperture List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.6 Use of “Lead” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
3.1.4 Solder Paste Layer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.7 Abbreviations and Acronyms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
3.1.5 Data Transfer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.7.1 PCB Printed Circuit Board . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
3.1.6 Panelized Stencils . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.7.2 BGA Ball Grid Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
3.1.7 Step-and-Repeat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.7.3 FPT Fine-Pitch Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
3.1.8 Image Orientation/Rotation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.7.4 SMT Surface Mount Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
3.1.9 Image Location . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.7.5 THT Through-Hole Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
3.1.9.1 Multiple Assembly Images . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1.8 Terms and Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
3.1.10 Identification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1.8.1 *Aperture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
3.2 Aperture Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1.8.2 *Area Ratio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
3.2.1 Aperture Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1.8.3 *Aspect Ratio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
3.2.1.2 Area Ratio/Aspect Ratio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1.8.4 Border . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
3.2.2 Aperture Size versus Board Land Size f
1.8.5 Enclosed Print Head . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 or Tin Lead Solder Paste . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
1.8.6 Etch Factor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 3.2.2.1 Terminal Leaded SMDs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
1.8.7 Relief Etch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 3.2.2.2 Plastic BGAs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
1.8.8 Fiducials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 3.2.2.3 Ceramic Grid Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
1.8.9 Fine-Pitch Ball Grid Array (BGA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 3.2.2.4 Fine and Ultra-Fine Pitch BGA and CSP . . . . . . . 12
1.8.10 Fine-Pitch Technology (FPT) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 3.2.2.5 Discrete Components –
1.8.11 Foil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Resistors and Capacitors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
1.8.12 Frame . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 3.2.2.6 Cylindrical, Mini-MELF and
Discrete Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
1.8.13 Intrusive Soldering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
3.2.2.7 LCC/BTC Devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
1.8.14 *Land . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
3.2.3 Aperture Size versus Board Land
1.8.15 Modification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Size for Lead Free Solder Paste . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
1.8.16 *Overprinting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
3.2.3.1 Terminal Leaded SMDs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
1.8.17 *Pad See “Land” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
3.2.3.2 Plastic BGAs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
1.8.18 Squeegee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
3.2.3.3 Ceramic Grid Arrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
1.8.19 Squeegee Direction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
3.2.3.4 Fine and Ultra-Fine Pitch BGA and CSP . . . . . . . 13
1.8.20 Standard BGA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
3.2.3.5 Discrete Components -
1.8.21 *Stencil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Resistors and Capacitors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
1.8.22 Step Stencil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 3.2.3.6 MELF, Mini-MELF Components . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
1.8.23 *Surface-Mount Technology (SMT) . . . . . . . . . . . 3 3.2.3.7 BTC/LCC Devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
1.8.24 Through-Hole Technology (THT) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 3.2.4 Glue Aperture Discrete Component . . . . . . . . . . . 14

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IPC-7525C November 2021

3.2.5 Glue Apertures for Combination of Discrete Tables

Components and Terminal Leaded Devices . . . . . 14 Table 3-1 Stencil Use Clauses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
3.2.6 Relief Etch with Glue Stencils . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Table 3-2 General Aperture Design
3.3 Mixed Technology Surface-Mount/Through-Hole Guideline Examples for Selective
(Intrusive Soldering) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Surface-Mount Devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
3.3.1 Solder Paste Volume . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Table 3-3 Process Window for Intrusive Soldering -
Maximum Limits Desirable . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
3.4 Mixed Technology Surface-Mount/Flip Chip . . . 16
3.4.1 Two-Print Stencil for Figures
Surface-Mount/Flip Chip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Figure 3-1a 3mil Thick Stencil
3.5 Step Stencil Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Aperture Size Guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
3.5.1 Step-Down Stencil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Figure 3-1b 0.080 mm Thick Stencil
Aperture Size Guideline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
3.5.2 Step-Up Stencil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Figure 3-2b 0.100 mm Thick Stencil
3.5.3 Step Stencil for Enclosed Print Heads . . . . . . . . . 18 Aperture Size Guideline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
3.5.4 Relief-Etch Stencil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Figure 3-3b 0.125 mm Thick Stencil
3.6 Fiducials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Aperture Size Guideline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
3.6.1 Global Fiducials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Figure 3-4b 0.150 mm Thick Stencil
3.6.2 Local Fiducials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Aperture Size Guideline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

3.7 Rework and Repair Stencils . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Figure 3-5b 0.200 mm Thick Stencil
Aperture Size Guideline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
3.7.1 Mini Stencils . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Figure 3-7 Home Plate Aperture Design . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
3.7.2 Repair Tool for Printing Paste Directly
on the Component . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Figure 3-6 Cross-Sectional View of a Stencil . . . . . . . . 12
Figure 3-8 Bow Tie Aperture Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
4.0 STENCIL FABRICATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Figure 3-10 Aperture Design for Cylindrical
4.1 Foils . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Components and Chip Components
4.2 Frames . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 (All Corners Rounded) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
4.3 Stencil Border . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Figure 3-9 Oblong Aperture Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
4.4 Stencil Fabrication Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Figure 3-12 Glue Stencil Aperture Design . . . . . . . . . . . 14
4.4.1 Chemical Etch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Figure 3-14 Print Only Mode 15 mil Thick Stencil . . . . . 14
4.4.1.1 High-Precision Etch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Figure 3-13 Chip Component and
4.4.2 Laser-Cut Stencils . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 SOIC Present on Board . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

4.4.3 Electroform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Figure 3-15 Glue Stencil with Glue Reservoir . . . . . . . . 14

4.4.4 Hybrid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Figure 3-16 Through-Hole Solder Paste Volume . . . . . . . 15

4.4.5 Trapezoidal Apertures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Figure 3-17 Overprint Without Step . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

4.4.6 Additional Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Figure 3-18 Overprint With Step (Squeegee Side) . . . . . 16
Figure 3-19 Overprint With Step (Contact/Board Side) . 16
5.0 STENCIL MOUNTING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Figure 3-22 Print With Step . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
5.1 Location of Image on Metal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Figure 3-20 Two-Print Through-Hole Stencil . . . . . . . . . 17
5.2 Centering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Figure 3-21 Two-Print Through-Hole Stencil . . . . . . . . . 17
5.3 Additional Design Guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Figure 3-23 Step Down . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
6.0 STENCIL ORDERING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Figure 3-24 Step Up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
7.0 STENCIL USER’S Figure 4-1 Trapezoidal Apertures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
INSPECTION/VERIFICATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

8.0 STENCIL CLEANING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

9.0 END OF LIFE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

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Stencil Design Guidelines

1.0 SCOPE

1.1 Purpose This document provides guidance for the design and fabrication of stencils for solder paste and surface-mount
adhesive. It is intended as a guideline only. Much of the content is based on the experience of stencil designers, fabricators, and
users. Printing performance depends on many different variables and therefore no single set of design rules can be established.
Although this Handbook uses mandatory terminology, e.g., shall, must, etc., nothing within this Handbook is considered mandatory
unless this document is specified as a mandatory requirement in the contract documentation.

1.2 Classification There are three general Performance Classes

CLASS 1 General Electronic Products
• Includes products suitable for applications where the major requirement is function of the completed assembly.
CLASS 2 Dedicated Service Electronic Products
• Includes products where continued performance and extended life is required, and for which uninterrupted service is desired
but not critical. Typically, the end-use environment would not cause failures.
CLASS 3 High Performance/Harsh Environment Electronic Products
• Includes products where continued high performance or performance-on-demand is critical, equipment downtime cannot
be tolerated, end-use environment may be uncommonly harsh, and the equipment must function when required, such as life
support or other critical systems.

1.3 Measurement Units All dimensions and tolerances in this specification are expressed in precise SI (metric) units and
bracketed soft imperial [inch] units. Users of this specification are expected to use metric dimensions. All dimensions
≥ 1 mm [0.0394 in] will be expressed in millimeters and inches. All dimensions < 1 mm [0.0394 in] will be expressed in micrometers
and microinches.

1.4 Definition of Requirements The words shall or shall not are used in the text of this document wherever there is a requirement
for materials, preparation, process control or acceptance.
The word “should” reflects recommendations and is used to reflect general industry practices and procedures for guidance only.
Line drawings and illustrations are depicted herein to assist in the interpretation of the written requirements of this Standard. The
text takes precedence over the figures.

1.5 Order of Precedence The contract shall take precedence over this Standard, referenced standards and drawings.
In the event of conflict, the following order of precedence applies:
1) Procurement as agreed and documented between customer and supplier.
2) Master drawing reflecting the customer’s detailed requirements.
3) When invoked by the customer or per contractual agreement, this standard.
When documents other than this standard are cited, the order of precedence shall be defined in the procurement documents.
The User has the opportunity to specify alternate acceptance criteria.

1.5.1 Conflict In the event of conflict between the requirements of this standard and the applicable drawing(s) and documentation,
the applicable user-approved drawing(s) and documentation govern.
Some examples of documentation include the contract, purchase order, technical data package, engineering specification or
performance specification. In the event of a conflict between the text of this standard and the applicable documents cited herein,
the text of this standard takes precedence. In the event of conflict between the requirements of this standard and drawing(s) and
documentation that has not been user approved, this standard governs.

1.5.2 Clause References When a clause in this document is referenced its subordinate clauses apply, unless the requirement
references specific subordinate clauses.

1.5.3 Appendices Appendices to this standard are not binding requirements unless separately and specifically required by this
standard, the applicable contracts, assembly drawing(s), documentation or purchase orders.

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IPC-7525C November 2021

1.6 Use of “Lead” For readability and translation, this document uses the noun lead only to describe leads of a component. The
metallic element lead is always written as Pb.

1.7 Abbreviations and Acronyms Periodic table elements are abbreviated in the standard.

1.7.1 PCB Printed Circuit Board

1.7.2 BGA Ball Grid Array

1.7.3 FPT Fine-Pitch Technology

1.7.4 SMT Surface Mount Technology

1.7.5 THT Through-Hole Technology

1.8 Terms and Definitions All terms and definitions used throughout this handbook are in accordance with IPC-T-50. Definitions
noted with an asterisk (*) are quoted from IPC-T-50. Other specific terms and definitions, essential for the discussion of the subject,
are provided below.

1.8.1*Aperture An opening in the stencil foil.

1.8.2 *Area Ratio The ratio of the area of aperture opening to the area of aperture walls.

1.8.3 *Aspect Ratio The ratio of the width of the aperture to the thickness of the stencil foil.

1.8.4 Border For mesh mount stencil format, this is peripheral tensioned mesh, either polyester or stainless steel, which keeps the
stencil foil flat and taut. For mesh exempt (i.e. frameless) stencil format this refers to the frame engagement devices located on the
foil perimeter. The border connects the foil to the frame in both formats.

1.8.5 Enclosed Print Head A stencil printer head that holds, in a single replaceable component, the squeegee blades and a
pressurized chamber filled with solder paste.

1.8.6 Etch Factor Etched Depth/Lateral; Etch in a chemical etching process.

1.8.7 Relief Etch Also known as Etch Relief and Under Etch. Adding an under etch of the foil to create a pocket for raised features,
labels, or a multi-print function. In this document Relief Etch is defined as Relief Pocket.

1.8.8 Fiducials Reference marks on the stencil foil (and other board layers) for aligning the board and the stencil

1.8.9 Fine-Pitch Ball Grid Array (BGA) Ball grid array (BGA) with less than 1 mm [39 mil] pitch. This is also known as chip scale
package (CSP) when the package size is no more than 1.2 times the area of the original die size.

1.8.10 Fine-Pitch Technology (FPT) A surface-mount assembly technology with component terminations on centers less than or
equal to 0.625 mm [24.6 mil].

1.8.11 Foil The sheet used to create the stencil, typically stainless steel or nickel, containing aperture openings corresponding to
a specific land pattern design.

1.8.12 Frame A traditional mesh mount stencil frame may be made of tubular or cast aluminum to which a tensioned mesh (border)
is permanently bonded using an adhesive. The foil is also permanently attached to the inside perimeter of this mesh. Mesh exempt
foils can be mounted into a re-usable tensioning master frame and do not require a mesh border and negate a permanent bonding
of the foil to the frame.

1.8.13 Intrusive Soldering A process in which the solder paste for the through-hole components is applied using the stencil. The
through-hole components are inserted and reflow-soldered together with the surface-mount components. Also known as Paste-In-
Hole, Pin-In-Hole, or Pin-In-Paste Soldering.

1.8.14 *Land A portion of a conductive pattern on the surface of a circuit board usually used for the connection and/or attachment
of components and onto which the stencil aperture openings are aligned to print electronic assembly material.

1.8.15 Modification The process of changing an aperture in size or shape.

1.8.16 *Overprinting The use of stencils with apertures larger than the lands or annular rings on the board.

1.8.17 *Pad See “Land”.