The
invention of the printed circuit board or the PCB helped to mount all
the active electronic components like resistors, capacitors, diodes, and
others at one place. The layers of PCBs increased from one to multiple
numbers. The interconnection between the layers was effected by using a PCB via.
When
there are too many components to be mounted on a PCB and the area is
limited, multiple layers of connections are created on the same circuit
board. The multiple layers need some means to connect the various
components to a signal and power sources. The connections are provided
by the pads.
Pads
are the pieces of copper strips that are present in different layers of
a multilayered PCB, which act as the connections inside that layer. The
connection between pads on the different layers is achieved by using
vias. The pads complete the connection between components mounted on the
top layer of the PCB.
The
construction of a PCB via is accomplished by making a hole between pads
on two or more layers of the PCB. A copper tube of the same size as the
hole is passed through it. The flanges at the ends of the tube touch
the pads to complete the connection.
The connection provided by the PCB via in pad
is the easiest way of completing the connection between two layers.
These vias can be of various types like blind vias, buried vias, and
thermal vias. Only one side of the blind vias is visible. Buried vias
cannot be seen from either side of the board while thermal vias are used
to draw away the heat from inside a multi-layered board.
The
small shiny metallic circles that appear on the upper and lower sides
of a PCB are the vias that connect the circuits in the different layers.
The pins of the components pass through these vias and are then
soldered on the other side.