---
title: "What is a Computer keyboard made of?"
description: "ABS or PBT keycaps over either a silicone rubber dome on printed film, or individual mechanical switches. Every component, the material it uses, and the constraint t"
url: https://atoneplace.net/made-of/keyboard/
site: "At One Place"
---

# What is a Computer keyboard made of?

**What is a Computer keyboard made of?: ABS or PBT keycaps over either a silicone rubber dome on printed film, or individual mechanical switches.**

The keycap plastic explains most of the visible ageing: ABS is a softer polymer that polishes under fingertips into the shine familiar from any old keyboard, while PBT keeps its texture much longer. Legend printing matters as much — pad-printed legends rub off, laser-etched ones fade, and doubleshot caps have the legend moulded as a separate piece of plastic that cannot wear away because it goes all the way through. Membrane boards fail as a unit when the printed traces crack or a spill bridges them; mechanical boards fail one switch at a time and can be repaired, which is the practical argument for them beyond feel.

## Component by component

*Every material is a choice, and the third column is the constraint that drove it.*

| Part | Material | Why that material |
| --- | --- | --- |
| keycaps | ABS, or PBT in better keyboards | ABS is cheap and takes sharp legends but develops a greasy shine within a year; PBT is harder, more textured and resists shine. |
| membrane mechanism | silicone rubber domes over three printed polyester sheets with carbon traces | The whole switching layer is three films and a rubber sheet, which is why a membrane keyboard costs a few pounds to make. |
| mechanical switch | a nylon and polyacetal housing with a spring and gold-plated crosspoint contacts | Each key gets its own switch with a defined force curve and a 50-100 million press rating, which is what the price buys. |
| stabilisers | wire and plastic inserts under wide keys | Without them a space bar pressed at one end binds; they are also the usual source of rattle in a mechanical board. |
| plate and PCB | steel or aluminium plate over a printed circuit board with a matrix and diodes | The diodes are what allow N-key rollover — without them, three simultaneous keys can register a phantom fourth. |

## Other electronics objects

- [Alkaline battery](https://atoneplace.net/made-of/alkaline-battery/) — Zinc powder and manganese dioxide either side of a potassium hydroxide paste, in a steel can.
- [Smartphone screen](https://atoneplace.net/made-of/smartphone-screen/) — Chemically strengthened aluminosilicate glass over a touch layer and an OLED or LCD panel, with an oil-shedding coating on top.
- [Solar panel](https://atoneplace.net/made-of/solar-panel/) — Doped silicon wafers with silver contacts, sealed between low-iron glass and a plastic backsheet in an aluminium frame.
- [LED bulb](https://atoneplace.net/made-of/led-bulb/) — Blue LED chips under a yellow phosphor, plus a driver circuit and a heat sink — and it is the driver that dies.
- [Touchscreen](https://atoneplace.net/made-of/touchscreen/) — A grid of transparent electrodes measuring the tiny capacitance your finger adds — which is why gloves fail.
- [Headphones](https://atoneplace.net/made-of/headphone/) — A neodymium magnet, a coil of copper wire and a thin plastic diaphragm — a loudspeaker shrunk to fit an ear.
- [Loudspeaker](https://atoneplace.net/made-of/speaker/) — A paper or plastic cone hung on a rubber surround, driven by a coil in a magnet gap.
- [Computer mouse](https://atoneplace.net/made-of/computer-mouse/) — An ABS shell around a tiny camera taking thousands of pictures a second, plus two clicky microswitches and PTFE feet.

## Common questions

### What is a Computer keyboard made of?

ABS or PBT keycaps over either a silicone rubber dome on printed film, or individual mechanical switches.

### What is the keycaps of a Computer keyboard made of?

ABS, or PBT in better keyboards. ABS is cheap and takes sharp legends but develops a greasy shine within a year; PBT is harder, more textured and resists shine.

### What is the membrane mechanism of a Computer keyboard made of?

Silicone rubber domes over three printed polyester sheets with carbon traces. The whole switching layer is three films and a rubber sheet, which is why a membrane keyboard costs a few pounds to make.

## Related pages

- [Alkaline battery](https://atoneplace.net/made-of/alkaline-battery/)
- [Smartphone screen](https://atoneplace.net/made-of/smartphone-screen/)
- [Solar panel](https://atoneplace.net/made-of/solar-panel/)
- [LED bulb](https://atoneplace.net/made-of/led-bulb/)
- [Touchscreen](https://atoneplace.net/made-of/touchscreen/)
- [Headphones](https://atoneplace.net/made-of/headphone/)
- [Loudspeaker](https://atoneplace.net/made-of/speaker/)
- [Computer mouse](https://atoneplace.net/made-of/computer-mouse/)
- [Pencil](https://atoneplace.net/made-of/pencil/)
- [Tennis ball](https://atoneplace.net/made-of/tennis-ball/)
- [Banknote](https://atoneplace.net/made-of/banknote/)
- [Golf ball](https://atoneplace.net/made-of/golf-ball/)
- [Paper](https://atoneplace.net/made-of/paper/)
- [Glass](https://atoneplace.net/made-of/glass/)

## Sources

- Typical range compiled from manufacturer specifications — At One Place (/about/)