Method of using conductive polymers to manufacture printed circuit boards

A method of direct plating through-hole walls in a printed circuit board comprising the steps of:

• forming a solution comprising a pyrrole monomer and an electron acceptor;
• applying a film of the solution onto the through-hole walls;
• photopolymerizing the film to form electronically conducting polypyrrole;
• washing an unpolymerized mixture off the board;
• activating the polypyrrole with aqueous palladium bromide;
• and
• electrodepositing a metal onto the activated polypyrrole.

A direct metallization process for manufacturing a printed circuit board from a substrate having a top surface and through-holes walls therein, comprising the steps of:

• forming a solution comprising a pyrrole monomer and an electron acceptor;
• applying a film of the solution onto the top surface and a through-hole wall of the substrate;
• photopolymerizing portions of the film to form electronically conducting polypyrrole on the surface and the through-hole wall;
• washing an unpolymerized portion of the film off the substrate;
• activating the polypyrrole with aqueous palladium bromide;
• and
• electrodepositing a metal onto the activated polypyrrole.