Over the last year, a friend and I have been developing a process to quickly prototype PCBs. Our process currently takes an hour or less to etch a PCB. We have developed a maskless photolithography method to pattern our film photoresist, and have tried using both ferric chloride and hydrogen chloride to etch the PCBs. The results are fairly promising. We currently lack the chemical processes for vias, and must improve our lamination method for the dry film photoresist.
Below is a gallery showing what our PCBs look like.
One of the first attempts at etching a PCB. Hydrogen Chloride (HCl or Muriatic Acid) was used.
PCB Mask image to be used.
Raw copper PCB with photoresist on it.
Most recent attempt at etching a PCB. I was not present for the etching step. Ferric Chloride was used.