Photochemically Etched Busbars
Our photochemically etched busbars are custom engineered for demanding power distribution and battery applications. Busbars serve as critical conductive pathways in electric vehicles, energy storage systems, switchgear, and power electronics, where precision geometry and electrical performance directly impact system efficiency and reliability.
Our photochemical etching (PCE) process delivers what traditional stamping and machining cannot: burr-free edges, stress-free material, and micron-level tolerances without expensive hard tooling. This makes etched busbars ideal for next-generation battery packs, inverters, and charging infrastructure where design iterations happen quickly and performance margins are tight.
Why Photochemical Etching for Busbars?
Busbars manufactured through conventional methods often face limitations in geometric complexity, edge quality, and material stress. Fotofab’s chemical etching process removes these barriers.
We etch several types of metals, including copper, aluminum, and plated materials with thickness ranging from 0.001″ to 0.060″, producing flat or formed busbars with features stamping tools cannot achieve: internal and selectively etched areas, and complex geometries.
The digital photochemical etching process does not need expensive and time-consuming retooled dies when designs change. This accelerates prototyping cycles and reduces capital risk during product development. When you’re ready for production, scaling is seamless. Our process maintains the same quality and precision from a few prototype units to thousands of production parts, with competitive volume pricing and no additional tooling investment.
Applications Across Industries
Our etched busbars support power distribution and energy storage applications in sectors where reliability is non-negotiable.
Aerospace
Deliver lightweight, EMI-shielded power distribution for avionics, lighting, and control systems. Our aluminum and copper busbars reduce weight compared to bulky wiring harnesses while providing efficient grounding paths and high-current handling for electric propulsion systems.
Battery Energy Storage Systems
Connect cells and modules with minimal resistance and maximum space efficiency through custom configurations for cylindrical, pouch, and prismatic cell formats in grid-scale storage and modular battery systems.
Defense
Meet strict material traceability, performance validation, and regulatory compliance requirements with ITAR registration and full documentation for controlled projects requiring certified manufacturing processes.
Electric Vehicles and Hybrid Powertrains
Manage high currents in confined spaces while maintaining thermal stability with precision geometries that enable optimized current paths and integrated cooling features for battery packs and charging infrastructure.
Electronics and Data Infrastructure
Replace cable bundles in data centers, UPS systems, and server racks with efficient power distribution that improves airflow and reduces clutter. Miniature busbars deliver high-current capacity on PCBs for telecom and industrial electronics.
Industrial Power and Control
Distribute power efficiently in switchgear, control panels, and motor control centers. Handle high DC currents in solar inverters, wind turbines, and heavy machinery while simplifying system complexity compared to traditional cabling.
Medical Devices
Provide stable, high-current connections for MRI and CT scanner magnets, surgical robotics, and diagnostic equipment. Etched low-resistance designs ensure reliable power delivery in space-constrained applications and battery-powered mobile medical equipment.
Robotics
Enable compact, low-resistance power routing in industrial robots, collaborative robots (cobots), automated guided vehicles (AGVs), and automation systems where space constraints and high reliability are essential.
Metals Commonly Used in Photochemical Etching for Busbars
Fotofab employs a variety of metals in the photochemical etching process to ensure precision, durability, and accuracy.
Typical metals used for busbars include:
Other alloys are available for specific project needs.
Value-Added Services for Complete Solutions
Beyond etching, Fotofab offers integrated capabilities that reduce your supply chain complexity:
- Plating: Nickel, tin/lead (NADCAP), silver, and gold plating options to improve conductivity, corrosion resistance, or solderability.
- Forming and bending: Kick press, progressive die and 4-slide forming for multi-plane geometries and 3D busbar assemblies.
- Insulation coating: Powder coating, anodizing, Kapton and other polymers, or conformal coatings for electrical isolation.
- Diffusion bonding and stacking: Laminated busbar assemblies for compact, high-density power routing.
Design Freedom and Rapid Prototyping
Traditional busbar manufacturing locks you into tooling before you’ve validated performance. Fotofab reverses that risk. Send us your design and we’ll deliver your first prototype parts in days. Design iteration? Update the digital file and get revised samples faster than traditional machining. Once validated, production scales seamlessly, using the same process with no transition risk.
Benefits of Photochemical Etching for Busbars with Fotofab
High-precision components that enhance performance and efficiency
Our proven photochemical etching process delivers the complex geometries and tight tolerances required for high-current busbar applications, eliminating tooling costs while maintaining burr-free edges and stress-free material integrity.
Benefits of this process include:
Complex Geometries: Achieve intricate cutouts, slots, and fine-pitch features that stamping cannot produce.
Flexibility: Reduce or eliminate die-tooling costs and accelerate design iteration cycles from prototype to production.
No Mechanical Stress: Maintain burr-free edges and stress-free material for optimal electrical performance.
Scalability: Scale seamlessly from prototype quantities to high-volume production.
One-Stop-Shop: Access integrated plating, forming, and coating services.
Compliance: Ensure compliance with ITAR, AS9100D, ISO 9001:2015, RoHS, NADCAP (platings) certification requirements.
Material Efficiency: Reduce material waste compared to subtractive machining and stamping processes.
Consistency: Produce parts with consistent accuracy regardless of design complexity.
Fotofab Advantages
Blending experience, expertise, and the latest advanced technologies, Fotofab has positioned itself as a leader in advanced photochemical etching solutions for busbars and other components, ensuring high precision, cost-effectiveness, and rapid production times.
Delivering higher precision and faster production, we’ve become the trusted partner for precision components used across a range of leading industries.
Adhering to strict quality control standards and certifications, we ensure each product meets or exceeds industry benchmarks for performance and reliability. Our proven process generates less waste and requires fewer resources, minimizing our environmental impact.
Fotofab is committed to quality.
