The Impact of 5G on Flexible Circuit Boards

In electronic products, flexible circuit boards are used as connecting wires in electronic devices, mainly to conduct current and transmit signals. Flexible PCBs are widely used in communications, automotive electronics, medical, industrial control and other fields. The era of 5G high-frequency and high-speed communication has spawned the demand for high-frequency Flexible circuit boards and the increase in flexible circuit boards brought about by changes in the internal structure of smartphones. On the other hand, terminal innovations such as OLED, 3DSensor, and wireless charging will bring new flexible circuit boards, thus help the global output value of flexible circuit boards to further expand.

Looking at the products of Apple, the leading company with the largest amount of flexible circuit boards, driven by innovative applications, the iPhone series started with the iPhone 4 in 2010, and the amount of flexible circuit board has been increasing. In recent years, the proportion of flexible circuit board in the entire PCB output value is comparable. Compared with 2010, it has also improved greatly. In the 5G era, flexible circuit board will have a large number of new applications in communication base stations, antennas and mobile phones, which will bring a new round of rapid growth in demand for flexible circuit boards. Kaboer Technology is actively developing application scenarios of flexible circuit boards in the 5G era, and reserve related technologies and projects, to prepare for the major opportunities brought by the 5G era.

Looking to the future, the trend of 5G and consumer electronics innovation will continue, and the market space for flexible circuit boards will continue to expand, which will benefit related industry companies. In terms of quantity, due to the high working frequency of millimeter waves, 5G communication base stations and mobile terminal equipment have a large demand for high-frequency antennas. From the perspective of the industrial structure, thanks to cost advantages and market demand, the number of mobile phone antennas needs to increase by three times in the next few years, and the consumption of high-frequency flexible circuit boards will increase with the increase in the number of mobile phone antennas. According to Kaboer Technology Market, China’s flexible circuit board market is expected to reach 51.6 billion yuan in 2021, with a compound growth rate of 10%.