Affordable reliable packaging technologies for avionics systems of the coming era

Lower cost, reliable military avionics systems can be realized by leveraging key enabling packaging technologies from the commercial electronics industry. This includes the technologies and corresponding infrastructures which are arising in response to the Consumer Portable Electronics COTS market. This paper argues that innovative use of emerging commercial packaging technologies will be required for military avionics OEMs to survive and compete; especially as we move towards the year 2000 in an environment where the rules and rites of classical military procurement are fading. Three emerging packaging technology areas have been identified as being key enablers for realizing low cost reliable avionics systems. The technology areas are: area array interconnects; advanced PWB technologies; composite materials for heatsinks. The movement towards area array interconnection is the impetus behind development of the mentioned enabling technologies. These technologies will be useful to Avionics OEMs whether for new designs or for the repackaging of commercial architectures for insertion into tactical environments.