Plating on Plastics

A key part of the electroplating process is the use of electricity to deposit the desired material onto the surface of a substrate. However, if the substrate being plated is non-conductive (glass, plastic, and ceramics), then the desired coating will not be deposited. 

In order to properly electroplate non-conductive materials, their surface must be made conductive. This is why non-conductive substrates require an electroless nickel base layer (or another autocatalytic material) to be plated first, allowing subsequent surface finishes to be applied.

In the case of plastic, an extra pre-treatment chemical bath is often required to make the surface more adhesive. Once prepped, the plastic is then coated through the electroless nickel process. Once coated in an electrically conductive nickel layer, subsequent layers can be applied through electrolytic or electroless plating processes. 

Note: Due to the complexity of the non-conductive substrate plating process, it is important to account for thickness, dimensional variation, and component draining ability (through hole).