what is smt

SMT stands for Surface-mount technology, which is a method of mounting electrical components directly onto the surface of a printed circuit board (PCB) . This method has largely replaced the through-hole technology construction method of fitting components, in large part because SMT allows for increased manufacturing automation which reduces cost and improves quality. It also allows for more components to fit on a given area of substrate. An electrical component mounted in this manner is referred to as a surface-mount device (SMD) . SMT components are usually smaller than their through-hole counterparts because they have either smaller leads or no leads at all. The SMT process involves three main steps: solder paste printing, component placing, and reflow soldering. SMT is used almost exclusively for PCB assembly and manufacture these days, and it is possible to pack far more electronics into a smaller space using SMT.