What are stack-ups?

Stack-ups refer to the arrangement of layers comprising a printed circuit board (PCB). These layers include:

Signal layers
Ground planes
Power planes
Dielectric layers
Prepreg layers

Fabricators can support a combination of standard and custom PCB stack-ups utilizing different materials that optimize for the specific performance and fabrication requirements of the board you are building.

Quilter works closely with these fabricators to define and utilize a range of standard stack-ups when generating its PCBs.

How does Quilter choose stack-ups?

Each design that Quilter generates specifies a specific stack-up and associated material properties to explore different routing strategies and complete the physics calculations necessary to implement impedance-controlled signals properly (ex: differential pairs).

Quilter's standard stack-ups have been pre-defined in partnership with our preferred fabrication partners, which include OshPark, JLCPCB, and MacroFab. Each stack-up also has a corresponding set of compatible design rules that ensure each design we generate is manufacturable by the specified fabrication partner.

What stack-ups does Quilter use?

We're rapidly expanding and improving the stack-ups that are available to use within Quilter. At the moment, all Quilter stack-ups currently feature:

2, 4, or 6-layers
1oz external copper
1.6mm board thickness
Pre-selected power and ground layers

The table below contains the specific stack-ups that we explore as a part of every layout job submitted to Quilter. You can view details for each stack-up at the bottom of this article or by clicking on the anchor link associated with the stack-up you're interested in.

Fabricator	Stack-up profile	Layers	Thickness	Copper
Oshpark	2-Layer Standard Prototype Board	2 layers	1.6mm	1 oz
Oshpark	4-Layer Standard Prototype Board	4 layers	1.6mm	1 oz
Oshpark	6-Layer Standard Prototype Board	6 layers	1.6mm	1 oz
JLCPCB	JLCPCB 2-Layer Prototype (Generic)	2 layers	1.6mm	1 oz
JLCPCB	JLCPCB 4-Layer Prototype (Generic)	4 layers	1.6mm	1 oz
JLCPCB	JLCPCB 6-Layer Prototype (Generic)	6 layers	1.6mm	1 oz
MacroFab	MF_2-Layer_1oz_1_6mm	2 layers	1.6mm	1 oz
MacroFab	MF_4-Layer_1oz_1_6mm	4 layers	1.6mm	1 oz
MacroFab	MF_6-Layer_1oz_1_6mm	6 layers	1.6mm	1 oz
MacroFab	MF_8-Layer_1oz_1_6mm	8 layers	1.6mm	1 oz
MacroFab	MF_10-Layer_1oz_1_6mm	10 layers	1.6mm	1 oz
CircuitHub	CircuitHub 2-Layer 1.6mm	2 layers	1.6mm	1 oz
CircuitHub	CircuitHub 4-Layer 1.6mm	4 layers	1.6mm	1 oz
CircuitHub	CircuitHub 6-Layer 1.6mm	6 layers	1.6mm	1 oz
CircuitHub	CircuitHub 8-Layer 1.6mm	8 layers	1.6mm	1 oz
CircuitHub	CircuitHub 10-Layer 1.6mm	10 layers	1.6mm	1 oz

FAQs

Can I use my custom stack-ups?

At the moment, it is not possible to instruct Quilter to use a custom stack-up, though it's on our roadmap to support. Please add your vote and comments if this is something you'd like to see us add to the product.

If you or your organization are using Quilter at work, please reach out to let us know; we'd be happy to add your custom stack-up to our repository in the meantime.

Can I indicate which copper layers should be power, ground, or signal layers?

Not at the moment. We also plan to support this via custom stack-ups, so let us know if this is important to you.

What if I want to build my design with another fabricator?

If you have not specified any impedance control constraints, then the design that Quilter generates for you should be portable between any fabricator that can support the specified layer count and design rules for your candidate.

That said, our stack-up profiles were selected because they're extremely common. If you have impedance control constraints specified, you can likely find a similar stack-up at your preferred fabricator.