Background information
A floating PC cube: «I’d do it all again, but not in the same shape»
by Philipp Rüegg
Motherboard, why are you green?
28.12.2018
Translation: Eva Francis
Motherboards, graphic or sound cards: Green is the dominating colour in the world of printed circuit boards. But why? What motivated hardware makers to use no other colour as much as the colour of hope?
The inside of an old Game Boy module has made me rack my brains. Why are most printed circuit boards green and always have been?
We need to tackle this question by figuring out what this green coating is.
Printed circuit board, what’s that green stuff you’re covered with?
The task of a printed circuit board is to connect the electronic components of a device. This is done using conductive tracks, pads and other features etched from one or more sheet layers of copper. Fiberglass mats with epoxy resin are usually used as electrically insulating components on printed circuit boards.
The epoxy resin serves as solder mask. It protects conductive tracks from mechanical damage and corrosion. It also insulates and protects copper tracks during the soldering process and helps improve dielectric strength. And this solder mask is usually green.
It’s green because...
The synthetic resin that's used is something between transparent and yellow. This really raises the question why the solder mask for PC hardware is died green so often. The internet offers plenty of answers, but which of them are true?
Theory No. 1: Tradition
The green monochrome display set an example in the late 70s and early 80s. It was probably brought to the market by developers who supported a green political ideology. Maybe they just all had a green thumb – or they enjoyed smoking weed. The IT world is viewed in green, which was taken up again in films such as Matrix and Ghost In The Shell. So it's a traditional industry standard.
Theory No. 2: Money
The question isn’t whether green colour pigments cost less than red, blue or white ones. Green supports the production: The lasers and cameras of placement machines are able to measure the boards more precisely and faster if the latter are made of green materials.
Theory No. 3: Target group
Apparently, a marketing guru once decided to use brown and yellow printed circuit boards for cheap low-end goods, green for mid-range hardware and red, blue or even black circuit boards for high-end devices. Unfortunately, most manufacturers don't follow these guidelines.
The truth
Most explanations found in the infinite depths of the world wide web point to a traditional industry standard. But I'm still not sure if this is true. So I'm asking you. Take part in the survey below. Sure, it won't help me, but it's fun. If you believe in any other theory or know the undisputed answer to my question, please comment below this article.
Martin Jud
Senior Editor
martin.jud@digitecgalaxus.chI find my muse in everything. When I don’t, I draw inspiration from daydreaming. After all, if you dream, you don’t sleep through life.
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