Technical Library | 2019-05-21 17:23:47.0
Reflow temperature profiling is the most important aspect of proper control of the solder reflow process. It may appear to some to be a magical art practiced by a select experienced few, who are able to divine the proper settings for a reflow oven by reading graphs as if they were tea leaves. This does not have to be true. This article outlines a systematic method by which engineers and technicians can implement a successful reflow process from scratch.
Technical Library | 2019-11-13 13:53:50.0
Fiber optic harnesses appear simple, but they have been designed to maintain all of the critical areas of aligning two fibers and minimize the losses associated with a break in the transmission path. In order to understand how the connectors overcome alignment issues, we must first understand the issues. Fiber optic communications networks use specific wavelengths of light (or colors) to transmit information through a clear fiber at high speed. They use the property of internal reflection along the fiber’s axis to contain the light and keep the optical power high enough to be detected at the receiving end.
Technical Library | 2020-11-09 16:59:53.0
A customer contacted ACI Technologies regarding a high failure rate of their assemblies. They provided assemblies to be X-rayed and inspected for the purpose of identifying any process related issues such as (but not limited to) solder and assembly workmanship and evidence of damage due to moisture related problems during reflow (a.k.a. "popcorning"). Moisture damage usually appears as physical damage to the component. The first indication of moisture damage would be externally observable changes to the package in the form of bulging or fractures to the outer surface of the component, an example of which is shown in Figure 1. Internally observable indicators of moisture damage typically include fractures to the die inside the package and lifted or fractured wire bonds. These conditions would be apparent during transmissive X-ray inspection. Another symptom of moisture related damage would be inconsistent solder joint sizes that result from package deformation during the liquidus phase of the reflow process. None of these indicators of moisture related damage were present on the customer samples.
Technical Library | 2019-08-24 09:02:25.0
Many customers looking for IC shipping tubes value the appearance of the packing tube. They will feel that if the appearance of the IC tube does not look good, the quality will not be very good, so the first impression of the appearance of the Antistatic ic tube is very important. So what are the factors that affect the appearance of IC tubes?
Technical Library | 2013-01-18 02:42:14.0
ENIG (Electroless Nickel/Immersion Gold) is to deposit nickel gold plating which has good solderability, wear resistance , leveling appearance and small electric resistance. It included 4 steps that are pretreatment, immersion nickel, immersion gold and Post treatment...
Technical Library | 2009-03-19 20:23:54.0
Over the past several years, post-reflow defluxing of circuit assemblies has gained in popularity. Microminiaturization of components and boards, combined with higher expected reliability and increased product liability, have contributed to the prominence of defluxing. Lead-free solder paste - with its higher reflow temperatures and negative effects on flux - increase the likelihood of post-reflow defluxing to increase a product's reliability and aesthetic appearance.
Technical Library | 2007-04-18 19:23:22.0
Recent investigations have revealed that Pb-free solder joints may be fragile, prone to premature interfacial failure particularly under shock loading, as initially formed or tend to become so under moderate thermal aging. Depending on the solder pad surface finish, different mechanisms are clearly involved, but none of the commonly used surface finishes appear to be consistently immune to embrittlement processes. This is of obvious concern for products facing relatively high operating temperatures for protracted times and/or mechanical shock or strong vibrations in service.
Technical Library | 2008-09-04 17:57:24.0
In the quest for lower ESL devices, having the ESL reduced in the package is only half of the battle; connecting that device to the circuit determines how much of that low ESL appears to the circuit. For this low ESL part type, it would be a shame to take a part of 200 pH and add 2000 pH to its ESL because of via patterns on the PCB.
Technical Library | 2013-04-12 07:22:40.0
Here Chris talks about the pitfalls, the paucity of safe options for manufacturers seeking rare components, and his exasperation with organisations that appear to shelve common sense at the first sign of a shortage. He shares his ‘no nonsense’ approach to getting things right first time, and explains his thinking in establishing an independent distributor focused exclusively on delivering 100% component integrity.
Technical Library | 2014-03-27 14:50:01.0
Because of the phase out of CFC's and HCFC's, standard solder pastes and fluxes evolved from RA and RMA fluxes, to No-Clean, to low residue No-Clean, to very low residue No-Clean. Many companies came out with their cleaning solutions, aqueous and semi-aqueous, with each product release being more innovative than the previous one. Unfortunately for most of the suppliers of cleaners, two other trends appeared; lead-free soldering and the progressive miniaturization of electronic devices.
