What could I use to remove silkscreen labeling from ICs, wafers, and laminates without destroying whatever I am cleaning? This is for no particular reason, just a curiosity.
I think that most silkscreen inks these days are some sort of epoxy, which means that they're pretty much immune to all but the most extreme of solvents. IC packages are now frequently laser-etched, so there's no ink to remove at all... Abrasives still work.
I did, however, in the process of cleaning the garage, find an old sample of Miller Stephenson's "Conformal Coating Stripper" that claims to remove urethane, epoxy, and some lesser coatings. I expect "Conformal Coating Stripper" is a nice key phrase; web searches turn up several alternatives. But I didn't see anything in Newark's catalog...
Laser etched is the trend for sure. I suppose I could literally take some material off the top on the chip with abrasives. Hopefully, I will not take too much off.
