Homebrew_PCBs

How thick is the thinnest line that can be generated by a lasejet (say the
HP1200) and an injket?

When doing photographic etching, is the thickness of the line from the
printer the same as the eventual trace on the foil pattern? If the line
was, asay 0.5MM thick, would the trace be the same size as well?

I have found that the lines created by a Laserjet seem to be more "crisp"
than even a good Inkjet. Even if the Injket has from 1200 to 2400 DPI, a
LaserJet appears slightly clearer. Does this quality difference affect
the quality of a foil pattern?

Thanks,
Charles

dg140@... wrote:

>
> How thick is the thinnest line that can be generated by a lasejet (say the
> HP1200) and an injket?
>
> When doing photographic etching, is the thickness of the line from the
> printer the same as the eventual trace on the foil pattern? If the line
> was, asay 0.5MM thick, would the trace be the same size as well?
>
> I have found that the lines created by a Laserjet seem to be more "crisp"
> than even a good Inkjet. Even if the Injket has from 1200 to 2400 DPI, a
> LaserJet appears slightly clearer. Does this quality difference affect
> the quality of a foil pattern?

It depends on the inkjet. AFAIK, the best is an epson stylus colour
printing onto epson transparency with the genuine ink. I can do sharp,
smooth tracks with less than 8mil width/spacing with a 720dpi epson
stylus 400 colour. Unlike a laser, you can print large *black* areas
without a single pin-hole of light getting thru. I always use the
film with ink side against the copper to get sharp traces.

dg140@... wrote:

>How thick is the thinnest line that can be generated by a lasejet (say the
>HP1200) and an injket?
>
>When doing photographic etching, is the thickness of the line from the
>printer the same as the eventual trace on the foil pattern? If the line
>was, asay 0.5MM thick, would the trace be the same size as well?
>
>I have found that the lines created by a Laserjet seem to be more "crisp"
>than even a good Inkjet. Even if the Injket has from 1200 to 2400 DPI, a
>LaserJet appears slightly clearer. Does this quality difference affect
>the quality of a foil pattern?
>

One major fact with inkjets is that the print is very depended on the
print media. Lasterjets on the other hand do not suffer the same.
Comparing inkjet to laser is meaningless unless the inkjet is on a
suitable paper/film. I have a 600 dpi Brother laser printer and a Epson
Stylus 600. The Epson has slightly better line edge jaggedness than the
laser when printing on transparency film (the Epson is also much more
opaque and pin hole free). To get small width lines and spaces you have
to have good process control in exposing, developing, and etching. All
this depends on what equipment you are using.
The advertised 1200/2400 dpi inkjets are not true black ink resolution.
There is plenty inkjet technology info around the web. These days many
people use inkjets for printing photos on special photo papers. The
printers are therefore optimized for photos and black text sharpness is
not a major priority.