Custom light pcbs...

[Gorgok]

Anyone have a good place to get custom pcbs made for LED emitters? I've only ever had normal PCBs made, none aluminum core ones. Is it absolutely necessary to make them aluminum core instead of just punching some (a bunch) vias through the base of the emitter? Considering they will be strapped to a massive hunk of aluminum anyway, all the aluminum core needs to do is transfer the immediate heat down, which gold/copper does better than aluminum does... But aluminum core would make it easier to design im sure.

Im thinking something like 10 LEDs per board, 6 boards total. Each board having 2 LEDs in series on 5 different channels. Though 15 LEDs per board, 4 boards total on 5 channels would also work i suppose.

 

[km1das]

I did some testing with LED light boards with the Cree high powered LEDS and used a normal board and just extended the center pad out from under the LED, made a giant I shape and dropped 8 vias down to the ground plane and in the testing that I did with it, I'm not even sure it needed that, granted that was only a test board and only had 1 led on in, but even when left on overnight, it never broke 90 degrees which seemed odd to me, but it is what it is. I'm not sure how much more it would heat up with more LED's on the board but definitely seemed fine to me. I stopped spending time on LED boards for the tank when I bought my new halides. Thanks.

 

[dartier]

You might want to PM jedimasterben. I am pretty sure he has done custom MPCB's before.

Dennis

 

[mcgyvr]

Sitopway on Ebay..
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Aluminium-b...294?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item43a7a142c6

 

[zachts]

several sources posted on this build
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?p=23594561#post23594561

The majority of commercial lights (think street light) use FRP with lots of vias and a solid copper base plate.

Both Luxeon and Cree post the design files on their sites for this method with proper number of vias and pad sizing, it works quite well, if done right, better than an aluminum core pcb.