Electronics Manufacturing Technical Articles

Cincinnati Sub-Zero Products, Inc.

Improving Product Reliability through HALT and HASS Testing

Sep 09, 2013 | Mark R. Chrusciel, Cincinnati Sub Zero

HALT & HASS technology uses a combination of accelerated stresses to expose product flaws early in the design and manufacturing stages, which improves product reliability and customer confidence. HALT & HASS is used to uncover many of the weak links inherent to the design and fabrication process of a new product as well as during the production phase to find manufacturing defects that could cause product failures in the field....

Publisher: Cincinnati Sub-Zero Products, Inc.

Cincinnati Sub-Zero (CSZ) offers a full range of standard and custom-designed Environmental Chambers providing our customers with solutions to meet their most demanding environmental testing requirements.

Cincinnati, Ohio, USA

Consultant / Service Provider, Other

Conformal Surface Plasmons Propagating on Ultrathin and Flexible Films

Sep 05, 2013 | Xiaopeng Shen,Tie Jun Cui,Diego Martin-Cano, Francisco J. Garcia-Vidal

Surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) are localized surface electromagnetic waves that propagate along the interface between a metal and a dielectric. Owing to their inherent subwavelength confinement, SPPs have a strong potential to become building blocks of a type of photonic circuitry built up on 2D metal surfaces; however, SPPs are difficult to control on curved surfaces conformably and flexibly to produce advanced functional devices. Here we propose the concept of conformal surface plasmons (CSPs), surface plasmon waves that can propagate on ultrathin and flexible films to long distances in a wide broadband range from microwave to mid-infrared frequencies....

Publisher: Southeast University (SEU)

Southeast University (SEU)

Southeast University is one of only 32 universities directly administered by the Chinese Department of Education, which are considered the top class universities in China.

Nanjing, China

Agilent Technologies, Inc.

Effect of Gold Content on the Microstructural Evolution of SAC305 Solder Joints Under Isothermal Aging

Aug 29, 2013 | Mike Powers, Jianbiao Pan, Julie Silk, Patrick Hyland

Au over Ni on Cu is a widely used printed circuit board (PCB) surface finish, under bump metallization (UBM), and component lead metallization. It is generally accepted that less than 3 wt.% Au in Sn-Pb solder joints inhibits formation of detrimental intermetallic compounds (IMC). However, the critical limit for Au content in Pb-free solder joints is not well established. Three surface-mount package platforms, one with a matte Sn surface finish and the others with Ni/Au finish, were soldered to Ni/Au-finished PCB using Sn-3.0Ag 0.5Cu (SAC305) solder, in a realistic manufacturing setting. The assembled boards were divided into three groups: one without any thermal treatment, one subjected to isothermal aging at 125°C for 30 days, and the third group aged at 125°C for 56 days... ...

Publisher: Agilent Technologies, Inc.

World's premier measurement company, providing the critical tools and technologies that sense, measure, and interpret the physical and biological world.

Loveland, Colorado, USA

The Institute of Electron Technology (ITE)

Whisker Growth In Tin Alloys On Glass-Epoxy Laminate Studied By Scanning ION Microscopy and Energy-Dispersive X-Ray Spectroscopy

Aug 22, 2013 | A. Czerwinski, A. Skwarek, M. Płuska, J. Ratajczak, K. Witek

Tin-rich solders are widely applied in the electronic industry in the majority of modern printed circuit boards (PCBs). Because the use of lead-tin solders has been banned in the European Union since 2006, the problem of the bridging of adjacent conductors due to tin whisker growth (limited before by the addition of Pb) has been reborn. In this study tin alloys soldered on glass-epoxy laminate (typically used for PCBs) are considered. Scanning ion microscopy with Focused Ion Beam (FIB) system and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDXS) were used to determine correlations between spatial non-uniformities of the glass-epoxy laminate, the distribution of intermetallic compounds and whisker growth....

Publisher: The Institute of Electron Technology (ITE)

A major Polish research centre with the primary focus on semiconductor micro- and nanotechnology.

Warsaw, Poland

Universiti Teknologi Malaysia

A Printed Circuit Board Inspection System With Defect Classification Capability

Aug 15, 2013 | I. Ibrahim, S. Bakar, M. Mokji, J. Mukred, Z. Yusof, Z. Ibrahim, K. Khalil, M. Mohamad

An automated visual PCB inspection is an approach used to counter difficulties occurred in human’s manual inspection that can eliminates subjective aspects and then provides fast, quantitative, and dimensional assessments. In this study, referential approach has been implemented on template and defective PCB images to detect numerous defects on bare PCBs before etching process, since etching usually contributes most destructive defects found on PCBs. The PCB inspection system is then improved by incorporating a geometrical image registration, minimum thresholding technique and median filtering in order to solve alignment and uneven illumination problem. Finally, defect classification operation is employed in order to identify the source for six types of defects namely, missing hole, pin hole, underetch, short-circuit, mousebite, and open-circuit....

Publisher: Universiti Teknologi Malaysia

The FKE was established in late 1974. Since 1st June 1995, the faculty commences operation at the main campus of the University in Skudai, Johor until today.

Johor, Malaysia

Profiling for Successful BGA/CSP Rework

Aug 14, 2013 | Metcal

This paper discusses how to successfully profile a printed circuit board when reworking Ball Grid Array and Chip Scale Packages....

Publisher: Metcal

Metcal

Manufacturer of high-performance precision rework systems for the electronics bench. Product lines include: Hand Soldering and Desoldering, Convection Rework products, Fume Extraction and Fluid Dispensing tools.

Cypress, California, USA

Al-Falah School of Engineering and Technology

Crimp Force Monitoring – The Recipe for Success

Aug 13, 2013 | Gustavo Garcia-Cota, Crimping Product Manager, Schleuniger, Inc.

One of the common issues I’ve noticed when visiting shops that use crimp force monitors (CFMs) is that the CFMs are usually turned off, regardless of the brand, because engineers and operators are not using them properly. Why, with all of their benefits, are CFMs not being used regularly by employees? One of the biggest problems is the lack of understanding of the variables affecting the CFM’s ability to detect variations. Crimp quality detection is similar to baking a cake. There are a lot of ingredients and if one ingredient is missing or of bad quality, you likely are not going to achieve your desired result. This article will go back through the basics of a crimp quality detection system and discuss what ingredients or variables you need to consider before switching off that CFM. ...

Publisher: Schleuniger, Inc.

Schleuniger, Inc.

Schleuniger, Inc. is a leading manufacturer of wire processing equipment. Our innovative automatic and semi-automatic machines are designed to cut, strip, crimp and mark all types of wire and cable.

Manchester, New Hampshire, USA

Other

Automatic PCB Defect Detection Using Image Substraction Method

Aug 08, 2013 | Sonal Kaushik, Javed Ashraf

In this project Machine Vision PCB Inspection System is applied at the first step of manufacturing, i.e., the making of bare PCB. We first compare a PCB standard image with a PCB image, using a simple subtraction algorithm that can highlight the main problem-regions. We have also seen the effect of noise in a PCB image that at what level this method is suitable to detect the faulty image. Our focus is to detect defects on printed circuit boards & to see the effect of noise. Typical defects that can be detected are over etchings (opens), under-etchings (shorts), holes etc......

Publisher: Al-Falah School of Engineering and Technology

AFSET, established in 1997, is endeavor of Al-Falah Charitable Trust in keeping with the approach for professional education training and guidance.

New Delhi, India

Return of Investment: AOI vs No-AOI

Aug 07, 2013 | Titus T. Suck, Orbotech SA

Inspection and test equipment is expensive, produces nothing and does not contribute to the company’s bottom line! Such may be the thinking of many. But as today’s electronic assemblies use more and ever smaller components that are impossible to inspect manually, and components that are impossible to test electrically, the main question is “What costs are manufacturers absorbing because they do not have an Automated Optical Inspection system?”...

Publisher:

Comparing Costs and ROI of AOI and AXI

Aug 07, 2013 | Peter Edelstein, Teradyne

PCB architectures have continued their steep trend toward greater complexities and higher component densities. For quality control managers and test technicians, the consequence is significant. Their ability to electrically test these products is compounded with each new generation. Probe access to high density boards loaded with micro BGAs using a conventional in-circuit (bed-of-nails) test system is greatly reduced. The challenges and complexity of creating a comprehensive functional test program have all but assured that functional test will not fill the widening gap. This explains why sales of automated-optical and automated X-ray inspection (AOI and AXI) equipment have dramatically risen......

Publisher: Teradyne

Teradyne

Teradyne is a leading supplier of Automatic Test Equipment used to test semiconductors, wireless products, data storage and complex electronic systems which serve consumer, communications, industrial and government customers.

North Reading, Massachusetts, USA

Technical University of Denmark

Essentials of SMT - Practical Know How

Aug 07, 2013 | Young Bong Kang

This is a practical technical book written by the author based on 24 years of experience. Almost all SMT books, due partially to a few SMT-related books, put weight on equipment, single process or part technology rather than deal with practical process. The book dealing with practical process know-how is rarely found and this is perhaps the first book in which overall SMT practical processes and standards are presented....

Publisher:

A Review of Corrosion and Environmental Effects on Electronics

Aug 01, 2013 | Rajan Ambat

Electronic industry uses a number of metallic materials in various forms. Also new materials and technology are introduced all the time for increased performance. In recent years, corrosion of electronic systems has been a significant issue. Multiplicity of materials used is one reason limiting the corrosion reliability. However, the reduced spacing between components on a printed circuit board (PCB) due to miniaturization of device is another factor that has made easy for interaction of components in corrosive environments. Presently the knowledge on corrosion issues of electronics is very limited. This paper reviews briefly the materials used in electronic systems, factors influencing corrosion, types of corrosion observed in electronics, and testing methods....

Publisher: Technical University of Denmark

The Technical University of Denmark has an overall mission of developing and creating value using the natural sciences and the technical sciences to benefit society.

Lyngby, Denmark

Flex (Flextronics International)

Using Automated 3D X-Ray Inspection to Detect BTC Defects

Jul 25, 2013 | Barbara Koczera, An Qi Zhao

Bottom-termination components (BTC), such as QFNs, are becoming more common in PCB assemblies. These components are characterized by hidden solder joints. How are defects on hidden DFN joints detected? Certainly, insufficient solder joints on BTCs cannot be detected by manual visual inspection. Nor can this type of defect be detected by automated optical inspection; the joint is hidden by the component body. Defects such as insufficients are often referred to as "marginal" defects because there is likely enough solder present to make contact between the termination on the bottom-side of the component and the board pad for the component to pass in-circuit and functional test. Should the board be subjected to shock or vibration, however, there is a good chance this solder connection will fracture, leading to an open connection....

Publisher: Flex (Flextronics International)

Flextronics is a global full-service supplier of a full spectrum of value-added Electronic Manufacturing Services.

Singapore, Singapore

Consultant / Service Provider

Effect of Surface Oxide on the Melting Behavior of Lead-Free Solder Nanowires and Nanorods

Jul 18, 2013 | Fan Gao, Karunaharan Rajathurai, Qingzhou Cui, Guangwen Zhou, Irene NkengforAcha, Zhiyong Gu

Lead-free nanosolders have shown promise in nanowire and nanoelectronics assembly. Among various important parameters, melting is the most fundamental property affecting the assembly process. Here we report that the melting behavior of tin and tin/silver nanowires and nanorods can be significantly affected by the surface oxide of nanosolders....

Publisher: Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Massachusetts

Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Massachusetts

The Chemical Engineering Department boasts an accomplished faculty, a diverse range of programs and degrees and well-established ties to industrial and research institutions.

Lowell, Massachusetts, USA

MARTIN (a Finetech company)

Effect of BGA Reballing and its Influence on Ball Shear Strength

Jul 11, 2013 | S. Manian Ramkumar Ph.D., Andrew J. Daya, Daniel B. Lewanda; Rochester Institute of Technology, Scott Rushia; MARTIN

This research paper will focus on the effect of various parameters that are used to reball a BGA and their effect on the overall shear strength. Factors that will be looked at include the type of BGA (SAC305 or 63Sn/37Pb), the alloy used to reball (SAC405 or 63Sn/37Pb), the type of flux used (Water Soluble or No Clean), and the environment in which reballing takes place (Nitrogen or Ambient)....

Publisher: MARTIN (a Finetech company)

Manufacturer of rework and reballing systems, hand soldering solutions, and micro-dispensing technologies

Manchester, New Hampshire, USA

PCB Guide Design

Jul 11, 2013 | Y. B. Kang

The basic is essential to understand any technology. In SMT, PCB design is an important factor as the technology is fully automated and all the work is performed by machine. Machine is a sensor and it works by sensing the data given to it, so the data should be accurate for quality product. In the attached topic the basics of SMT designing is explained. In the book “Essentials of SMT: Practical Know-How” all the basics of SMT manufacturing is explained in very simple and easy to understand language. ...

Publisher:

Performance of Kapton Stencils vs Stainless Steel Stencils for Prototype Printing Volumes Processes

Jul 03, 2013 | Bob Wettermann, Hung Hoang

It has been demonstrated in numerous pieces of work that stencil printing, one of the most complex PCB assembly processes, is one of the largest contributors to defects (Revelino et el). This complexity extends to prototype builds where a small number of boards need to be assembled quickly and reliably. Stencil printing is becoming increasingly challenging as packages shrink in size, increase in lead count and require closer lead spacing (finer pitch). Prototype SMT assembly can be further divided between industrial and commercial work and the DIYer, hobbyist or researcher groups. This second group is highly price sensitive when it comes to the materials used for the board assembly as their funds are sourced from personal or research monies as opposed to company funds. This has led to development of a lower cost SMT printing stencil made from plastic film as opposed to the more traditional stainless steel stencil used by industrial and commercial users.This study compares the performance of these two traditional materials and their respective impact on solder paste printing including efficiency and print quality....

Publisher: BEST Inc.

BEST Inc.

BEST offers professional rework, repair and prototype builds of PCBs. Our expertise is on BGA rework and QFN rework. Our experienced instructors teach professional soldering classes as we are an IPC certified training center

Rolling Meadows, Illinois, USA

Justifying AOI and Automated X-Ray

Jul 02, 2013 | Don Miller, YesTech Inc.

AOI and AXI systems can address multiple tasks in various locations of the manufacturing process and have become the leading technologies in the quest to identify defects and improve process yields....

Publisher: Nordson YESTECH

Nordson YESTECH

Nordson YESTECH is a leading global provider of automated optical inspection and high-resolution x-ray inspection systems.

Carlsbad, California, USA

Industry Council on ESD Target Levels

System Level ESD Part II: Implementation of Effective ESD Robust Designs

Jun 27, 2013 | Industry Council on ESD Target Levels

While IC level ESD design and the necessary protection levels are well understood, system ESD protection strategy and design efficiency have only been dealt with in an ad hoc manner. This is most obvious when we realize that a consolidated approach to system level ESD design between system manufacturers and chip suppliers has been rare. This White Paper discusses these issues in the open for the first time, and offers new and relevant insight for the development of efficient system level ESD design....

Publisher: Industry Council on ESD Target Levels

An independent body of ESD experts with the mission to review the ESD robustness requirements of modern IC products for allowing safe handling and mounting

Dallas, Texas, USA

Association / Non-Profit

Low Surface Energy Coatings Rewrites the Area Ratio Rules

Jun 20, 2013 | Ricky Bennett; Assembly Process Technologies, Eric Hanson; Aculon

With today's consumer technologies driving the need for denser and more compact devices, the assembly process for surface mounted devices has becoming increasingly more difficult. With the mixture of components requiring a broader range of print deposition volume, various techniques are in use in an attempt to ensure consistent and appropriate paste volume is achieved. Some of these techniques include step etching a stencil locally on a targeted device, promoting electroformed smooth wall nickel stencils, through to laser cutting newer grade stencil materials. This paper focuses on the relevant attributes that affect the properties of solder paste release and introduces the effects of surface free energy with respect to key elements that make up the stencil printing process....

Publisher: Assembly Process Technologies LLC

Assembly Process Technologies LLC

With over 20 years of experience in the electronic and semiconductor assembly design, we offer rapid prototypes for R&D or New Product Introduction.

Flemington, New Jersey, USA

Consultant / Service Provider

Electromigration Damage Mechanics of Lead-Free Solder Joints Under Pulsed DC: A Computational Model

Jun 13, 2013 | Wei Yao, Cemal Basaran

Electromigration (EM) is a mass transportation mechanism driven by electron wind force, thermal gradient, chemical potential and stress gradient. According to Moore’s law, number of transistors on integrated circuits (ICs) doubles approximately every 2 years. Moore’s law holds true since its introduction in 1970s. This insatiable demand for smaller ICs size, larger integration and higher Input/Output (IO) count of microelectronics has made ball grid array (BGA) the most promising connection type in electronic packaging industry. This trend, however, renders EM reliability of solders joints a major bottleneck to hinder further development of electronics industry......

Publisher: Electronic Packaging Laboratory, State University of New York

Electronic Packaging Laboratory, State University of New York

The purpose of this laboratory is to develop the computational and experimental tools needed to develop the next generation of nanoelectronics and nanophotonics devices.

Buffalo, New York, USA

Best Practices Reflow Profiling for Lead-Free SMT Assembly

Jun 05, 2013 | Ed Briggs and Ronald C. Lasky, Ph.D., PE.

The combination of higher lead-free process temperatures, smaller print deposits, and temperature restraints on electrical components has created difficult challenges in optimizing the reflow process. Not only are the electronic components and the PWB at risk, but the ability to achieve a robust solder joint becomes difficult, especially if the PCB is thermally massive. In addition, the constant miniaturization of electronic components, hence smaller solder paste deposits, may require the use of smaller particle-sized powders (...) This paper is a summary of best practices in optimizing the reflow process to meet these challenges of higher reflow temperatures, smaller print deposits, decreased powder particle size, and their affect on the reflow process....

Publisher: Indium Corporation

Indium Corporation

Solder pastes, solder preforms, solder spheres, soldering fluxes, electrically-conductive adhesives. All alloys: tin-lead, lead-free, indium alloys, and more.

Utica, New York, USA

Crimp Quality Standards Comparison and Trends

Jun 05, 2013 | Rob Boyd, Crimping Product Manager

Quality standards are getting tougher each year. In these difficult times, wire harness manufacturers are looking to expand business in their existing markets and are looking for new markets. The following article will compare and contrast the current quality standards that are most commonly used today. It will review proper measurement techniques, discuss some trends in crimp quality, and address methods to improve efficiency in quality data collection....

Publisher: Schleuniger, Inc.

Schleuniger, Inc.

Schleuniger, Inc. is a leading manufacturer of wire processing equipment. Our innovative automatic and semi-automatic machines are designed to cut, strip, crimp and mark all types of wire and cable.

Manchester, New Hampshire, USA

Other

Coating Thickness Measurement of Thin Gold and Palladium Coatings on Printed Circuit Boards using X-Ray Fluorescence

May 30, 2013 | Michael Haller, Volker Rößiger, Simone Dill

This paper covers the following topics: The Measurement Application, Measurement Requirements, Measurement Problems, Measurement Results, Reference Samples, Conclusions ...

Publisher: Fischer Technology, Inc.

Fischer Technology, Inc.

As trends towards the miniaturization and increased functional integration of electronics, the demands on quality assurance are rising. FISCHER has many coating thickness measurement solutions for the electronics sector.

Windsor, Connecticut, USA

Printovate Technologies, Inc.

IPC Standards and Printed Electronics Monetization

May 23, 2013 | Daniel Gamota

Printed Electronics is considered by many international technologists to be a platform for manufacturing innovation. Its rich portfolio of advanced multi-functional nano-designed materials, scalable ambient processes, and high volume manufacturing technologies lends itself to offer an opportunity for sustained manufacturing innovation. The success of introducing a new manufacturing technology is strongly dependent on the ability to achieve high final product yields at current or reduced cost. In the past, standards have been the critical vehicles to enable manufacturing success... First published in the 2012 IPC APEX EXPO technical conference proceedings....

Publisher: Printovate Technologies, Inc.

Providing product design, manufacturing design, and new product introduction services for clean-tech electronics products.

Palatine, Illinois, USA

iNEMI HFR-Free PCB Materials Team Project: An Investigation to Identify Technology Limitations Involved in Transitioning to HFR-Free PCB Materials

May 16, 2013 | John Davignon, iNEMI Chair

In response to a growing concern within the Electronic Industry to the transition to Halogen-Free laminates (HFR-Free) within the Client Market space (Desktop and Notebook computers) iNEMI initiated a HFR-Free Leadership Workgroup to evaluate the readiness of the Industry to make this transition. The HFR-Free Leadership WG concluded that the electronic industry is ready for the transition and that the key electrical and thermo-mechanical properties of the new HFR-Free laminates can meet the required criteria. The HFR-Free Leadership WG verified that the laminate suppliers can meet the capacity demands for these new HFR-Free laminates and developed a "Test Suite Methodology" (TSM) that can facilitate the comparison and choice of the right laminate to replace brominated FR4 in the Client space... First published in the 2012 IPC APEX EXPO technical conference proceedings....

Publisher: Intel Corporation

Intel Corporation

Intel designs and builds the essential technologies that serve as the foundation for the world's computing devices.

Santa Clara, California, USA

Maximize Test Coverage While Optimizing Costs

May 10, 2013 | Paul Groome

In today’s manufacturing environments, optimizing manufacturing costs and, especially Test and Inspection costs are high on most company’s agendas. Resources are tight and many employees have multiple roles to fulfill across the whole manufacturing line so, time is limited. Test suppliers need to provide a suite of tools to ensure the highest level of quality for customer shipments. ...

Publisher: Digitaltest Inc.

Digitaltest Inc.

Digitaltest is a Leading Test Equipment Supplier of; High Accuracy Flying Probe Systems. High Speed, Non-Multiplexed, In-Circiuit Test Solutions. Functional Test Solutions. CAD/CAE, SPC and CAD Translation Software.

Concord, California, USA

CALCE Center for Advanced Life Cycle Engineering

Impact of Dust on Printed Circuit Assembly Reliability

May 09, 2013 | Bo Song, Michael H. Azarian and Michael G. Pecht

Atmospheric dust consists of solids suspended in air. Dust is well known for its complex nature. It normally includes inorganic mineral materials, water soluble salts, organic materials, and a small amount of water. The impact of dust on the reliability of printed circuit board assemblies (PCBAs) is ever-growing, driven by the miniaturization of technology and the increasing un-controlled operating conditions with more dust exposure in telecom and information industries... First published in the 2012 IPC APEX EXPO technical conference proceedings....

Publisher: CALCE Center for Advanced Life Cycle Engineering

The largest electronic products research center focused on electronics reliability, is dedicated to providing a knowledge and resource base to support the development of competitive electronic components, products and systems.

College Park, Maryland, USA

Consultant / Service Provider, Training Provider

Existing and Emerging Opportunities in Printed Electronics For Printers

May 02, 2013 | Don Banfield

Summary of some new and existing technologies for printed electronics outside of traditional membrane switch manufacturing. Discussion of requirements for understanding the technology of these applications in order to capitalize on them... First published in the 2012 IPC APEX EXPO technical conference proceedings....

Publisher: Conductive Compounds, Inc.

Conductive Compounds, Inc.

Supplier of high quality engineered materials, including conductive and resistive inks, UV curable dielectrics and insulators, adhesives, coatings, transducer inks and potting compounds.

Hudson, New Hampshire, USA

Manufacturer's Representative

Determination of Copper Foil Surface Roughness from Micro-section Photographs

Apr 25, 2013 | Scott Hinaga, Soumya De, Aleksandr Y. Gafarov, Marina Y. Koledintseva, James L. Drewniak

Specification and control of surface roughness of copper conductors within printed circuit boards (PCBs) are increasingly desirable in multi-GHz designs as a part of signal-integrity failure analysis on high-speed PCBs. The development of a quality-assurance method to verify the use of foils with specified roughness grade during the PCB manufacturing process is also important... First published in the 2012 IPC APEX EXPO technical conference proceedings....

Publisher: Cisco Systems, Inc.

Cisco Systems, Inc.

Cisco designs, manufactures, and sells Internet protocol (IP)-based networking and other products related to the communications and IT industry and provide services associated with these products.

San Jose, CA, USA

Effect of Silicone Conformal Coating on Surface Insulation Resistance (SIR) For Printed Circuit Board Assemblies

Apr 18, 2013 | Carlos Montemayor

Conformal coatings are considered a method of providing corrosion protection to electrical assemblies used in high-humidity or harsh environments. They are applied to PCBs for various reasons: to protect from moisture and contamination, to minimize dendritic growth, to provide stress relief, and for insulation resistance. These contribute to more durable handling, enhanced device reliability, and reduced warranty costs. Increased miniaturization of new circuit board designs requires flexible, low stress coating material to protect delicate components and fine-pitch leads. Silicone conformal coatings offer many advantages that address the general trend of ongoing PCBs designs, such as: high flexibility and low modulus to reduce stress on delicate or small components... First published in the 2012 IPC APEX EXPO technical conference proceedings....

Publisher: Dow Corning Corporation

Dow Corning Corporation

Supplier of surface mount adhesives, conformal coatings, gels/encapsulants, thermal management materials, high-purity precision cleaning fluids, & silicone removal agents.

Midland, Michigan, USA

“Near-Shoring” Electronics Manufacturing

Apr 12, 2013 | John Mayes, Managing Director - The Paragon Electronics Group

There is much to read about the shifting sands of electronics manufacturing, including current moves by OEMs to alter their EMS relationships to better mitigate risk and cost, while EMS companies look for additional ways in which to adjust their business models in an attempt to improve their profitability. Electronics outsourcing over time evolved from a means to buffer manufacturing demand fluctuations into a wide scale shift in capabilities, in part in order to deal with vastly shorter product life cycles. Following the global economic crash of 2000, aka “the internet bubble,” more and more EMS providers responded by transferring their manufacturing to low cost labour regions, and in particular China. ...

Publisher: JJS Electronics LTD

JJS Electronics LTD

We're an electronics manufacturing services (EMS) provider based in the UK and Czech Republic delivering reliable and cost-effective electronics assembly, including pcb assembly and test, in addition to electro-mechanical assembly

Lutterworth, United Kingdom

Component Obsolescence Still Driving the Counterfeit Market

Apr 12, 2013 | Ben Farrer, Business Development Manager, Vigilant Components

As change is inevitable, therefore so is obsolescence. In the electronics sector, stocks of components used in subassemblies will eventually run out, no surprise there! However on many occasions, particularly in the often long product life cycles associated with the traditional UK OEM’s in the industrial, military and medical sectors, to name but three, component supply gets ‘difficult’ long before the customers products themselves reach their ‘end of life’. Component manufacturers work to a commercial agenda; when the popularity of a specific device wanes, or indeed when new features are demanded by the market, they will cease production and redeploy their manufacturing capacity to devices that are being demanded by their high volume customers; the global players....

Publisher: Vigilant Components

Vigilant Components

Vigilant Components is an independent, specialist electronic components sourcing company, offering high integrity component sourcing, component testing, component verification.

Bedford, United Kingdom

Be Vigilant: It’s a Jungle Out There

Apr 12, 2013 | Chris Johnson is Group Chief Executive of Paragon Electronics Ltd

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....

Publisher: Vigilant Components

Vigilant Components

Vigilant Components is an independent, specialist electronic components sourcing company, offering high integrity component sourcing, component testing, component verification.

Bedford, United Kingdom

No-Clean Flux Residue and Underfill Compatibility Effects on Electrical Reliability

Apr 11, 2013 | Eric Bastow

With the explosion of growth in handheld electronics devices, manufacturers have been forced to look for ways to reinforce their assemblies against the inevitable bumps and drops that their products experience in the field. One method of reinforcement has been the utilization of underfills to "glue" certain SMDs to the PCB. Bumped SMDs attached to the PCB with a no-clean soldering process offer the unavoidable scenario of the underfill coming in contact with a flux residue. This may or may not create a reliability issue... First published in the 2012 IPC APEX EXPO technical conference proceedings...

Publisher: Indium Corporation

Indium Corporation

Solder pastes, solder preforms, solder spheres, soldering fluxes, electrically-conductive adhesives. All alloys: tin-lead, lead-free, indium alloys, and more.

Utica, New York, USA

Consultant / Service Provider

IPC 9252A Electrical Test Considerations & Military Specifications versus Electrical Test

Apr 04, 2013 | Todd L Kolmodin, VP Quality

This paper will outline and define what requirements must be adhered to for the OEM community to truly achieve the IPC class product from the Electrical Test standpoint. This will include the test point optimization matrix, Isolation (shorts) parameters and Continuity (opens) parameters. This paper will also address the IPC Class III/A additional requirements for Aerospace and Military Avionics. The disconnect exists between OEMs understanding the requirements of their specific IPC class design versus the signature that will be presented from their design. This results in many Class III builds failing at Electrical Test... First published in the 2012 IPC APEX EXPO technical conference proceedings...

Publisher: Gardien Services USA

Gardien Services USA

The Gardien Group is the world's largest provider of independent testing services to the PCB manufacturing industry.

Hillsboro, Oregon, USA

Programmable Logic Controller vs Programmable Automation Controller

Apr 03, 2013 | Don Fitchett

PLC vs PAC Difference & PAC Automation Controller Defined: This PLC vs PAC Difference article defines the PAC automation controller in relationship to the PLC. A PLC vs PAC comparison. Even more importantly, this article explains in great detail the need to differentiate when it comes to requesting and delivering PAC and/or PLC training....

Publisher: Business Industrial Network

Business Industrial Network

Offers training software, simulators, and videos. Also, on-site training qualifies for CEUs for maintenance, engineering, and management professionals.

Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

Consultant / Service Provider, Distributor, Media / Publisher / Online Resource, Research Institute / Laboratory / School, Training Provider

A Designed Experiment for the Influence of Copper Foils on Impedance, DC Line Resistance and Insertion Loss

Mar 28, 2013 | Alexander Ippich

For the last couple of years, the main concerns regarding the electrical performance of blank PCB boards were impedance and ohmic resistance. Just recently, the need to reduce insertion loss came up in discussions with blank board customers (...) The paper describes the test vehicle and the testing methodology and discusses in detail the electrical performance characteristics. The influence of the independent variables on the performance characteristics is presented. Finally the thermal reliability of the boards built applying different copper foils and oxide replacements was investigated....

Publisher: Multek Inc.

Multek Inc.

Multek is one of the leading printed circuit board suppliers in the world with nine production sites globally.

Northfield, Minnesota, USA

Distributor, Manufacturer

Vapor Phase Technology and its Application

Mar 27, 2013 | Allen Duck

Vapor phase, once cast to the annals’ of history is making a comeback. Why? Reflow technology is well developed and has served the industry for many years, it is simple and it is consistent. All points are true – when dealing with the centre section of the bell curve. Today’s PCB manufacturers are faced with many designs which no longer fall into that polite category but rather test the process engineering groups with heavier and larger panels, large ground planes located in tricky places, component mass densities which are poorly distributed, ever changing Pb Free alloys and higher process temperatures. All the time the costs for the panels increase, availability of “process trial” boards diminishes and yields are expected to be extremely high with zero scrap rates. The final process in the assembly line has the capacity to secure all the value of the assembly or destroy it. If a panel is poorly soldered due to poor Oven setup or incorrect programming of the profile the recovery of the panel is at best expensive, at worst a loss. For these challenges people are turning to Vapor Phase....

Publisher: A-Tek Systems Group LLC

A-Tek Systems Group LLC

Distributor of the highest quality SMT assembly equipment. Our 45 years of combined experience and commitment to excellence have earned us the reputation as the premier distributor in the Americas.

Longmont, Colorado, USA

Low Cycle Fatigue Behaviour of Multi-joint Sample in Mechanical Testing

Mar 21, 2013 | C.P. Hunt, O. Thomas, D. Di Maio, E. Kamara, H. Lu

This paper explores the behaviour of a copper test vehicle with multiple reflowed solder joints, which has direct relevance to ball grid arrays (BGA) and high density interconnect structures. The paper explores the relative stress conditions on the distributed joints and the sensitivity to ball joint shape... First published in the 2012 IPC APEX EXPO technical conference proceedings...

Publisher: National Physical Laboratory

National Physical Laboratory

NPL is the UK's National Measurement Institute, and a world-leading centre of excellence in developing and applying the most accurate measurement standards, science and technology available.

Middlesex, United Kingdom

Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Assembly and Reliability of 1704 I/O FCBGA and FPBGAs

Mar 14, 2013 | Reza Ghaffarian, Ph.D.

Commercial-off-the-shelf ball/column grid array packaging (COTS BGA/CGA) technologies in high reliability versions are now being considered for use in a number of National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) electronic systems. Understanding the process and quality assurance (QA) indicators for reliability are important for low-risk insertion of these advanced electronic packages. This talk briefly discusses an overview of packaging trends for area array packages from wire bond to flip-chip ball grid array (FCBGA) as well as column grid array (CGA). It then presents test data including manufacturing and assembly board-level reliability for FCBGA packages with 1704 I/Os and 1-mm pitch, fine pitch BGA (FPBGA) with 432 I/Os and 0.4-mm pitch, and PBGA with 676 I/Os and 1.0-mm pitch packages. First published in the 2012 IPC APEX EXPO technical conference proceedings....

Publisher: Jet Propulsion Laboratory

The JPL is the lead U.S. center for robotic exploration of the solar system, and conducts major programs in space-based Earth sciences and astronomy.

Pasadena, California, USA

Standards Setting / Certification, Training Provider

Compatibility of Cleaning Agents With Nano-Coated Stencils

Mar 12, 2013 | David Lober and Mike Bixenman, D.B.A.

High density and miniaturized circuit assemblies challenge the solder paste printing process. The use of small components such as 0201, 01005 and μBGA devices require good paste release to prevent solder paste bridging and misalignment. When placing these miniaturized components, taller paste deposits are often required. To improve solder paste deposition, a nano-coating is applied to laser cut stencils to improve transfer efficiency. One concern is the compatibility of the nano-coating with cleaning agents used in understencil wipe and stencil cleaning. The purpose of this research is to test the chemical compatibility of common cleaning agents used in understencil wipe and stencil cleaning processes.Compatibility of Cleaning Agents With Nano-Coated Stencils...

Publisher: KYZEN Corporation

KYZEN Corporation

A leading supplier of precision cleaning chemistries to the worldwide electronics, metal finishing, medical, semiconductor, and optical industries.

Nashville, Tennessee, USA

PTH Core-to-Core Interconnect Using Sintered Conductive Pastes

Mar 07, 2013 | Michael Matthews, Ken Holcomb, Jim Haley, Catherine Shearer

The market for high-layer-count printed circuit boards (PCB) containing blind and buried vias was once relatively small, and focused on specialized applications in the military and high end computing. The demand for these types of PCBs today is being driven by an increasing number of commercial applications in the telecommunications and semiconductor test market segments. These applications typically require high-aspect-ratio plated-through-holes (PTHs) and blind and buried vias in order to meet the applications interconnect density requirements. Blind and buried vias and high aspect ratio PTHs continue to present manufacturing challenges and frequently are the limiting features to achieving high fabrication yield... First published in the 2012 IPC APEX EXPO technical conference proceedings...

Publisher: Ormet Circuits, Inc.

Ormet Circuits, Inc.

Manufacturer of sintering, electrically conductive materials. Applications include semiconductor die attach, component attach, via fill, z-axis interconnection, conductive lines and traces and plated-through hole fill.

San Diego, California, USA

Universal Instruments Corporation

Cut Costs and Increase Efficiency with Innovation

Mar 07, 2013 | Pete Doyon, VP of Product Management

No one can deny that organizations across the country have been greatly affected by the decline in the economy. The manufacturing industry is no different. Even now as things seem to be looking up, companies are continually looking to cut costs and increase efficiencies. In addition, these companies must remain compliant with the strict quality and safety standards of the industry, adding even more pressure. Because of this, innovative, automated and easy to use products are needed more than ever before to help companies achieve their goals....

Publisher: Schleuniger, Inc.

Schleuniger, Inc.

Schleuniger, Inc. is a leading manufacturer of wire processing equipment. Our innovative automatic and semi-automatic machines are designed to cut, strip, crimp and mark all types of wire and cable.

Manchester, New Hampshire, USA

Other

Process Issues For Fine Pitch CSP Rework and Scavenging

Mar 04, 2013 | Anthony A. Primavera Ph.D.

Chip-scale (or chip-size) packages are rapidly becoming an important element in electronics due to their size, performance, and cost advantages [Hou, 1998]. The Chip Scale Package (CSP) is becoming a key semiconductor package type, particularly for consumer products. Due to their relatively smaller size, new challenges are presented in the rework and repair of CSPs. (...) The specific focus of this paper is the removal process for rework of CSPs and the site scavenging methods required to properly prepare the circuit board for a new component. Process factors such as the heating, fluxing and, atmosphere are discussed....

Publisher: Universal Instruments Corporation

Universal Instruments is a global leader in the design and manufacture of advanced automation and assembly equipment solutions for the electronics manufacturing industry.

Conklin, New York, USA

Effect of Cooling Rate on the Intermetallic Layer in Solder Joints

Feb 28, 2013 | Keith Sweatman, Tetsuro Nishimura, Stuart D. McDonald, Kazuhiro Nogita

While it has long been known that the Cu6Sn5 intermetallic that plays a critical role in the reliability of solder joints made with tin-containing alloys on copper substrates exists in two different crystal forms over the temperature range to which electronics circuitry is exposed during assembly and service, it has only recently been recognized that the change from one form to the other has implications for solder joint reliability. (..) In this paper the authors report a study of the effect of cooling rates on Cu6Sn5 crystals. Cooling rates from 200°C ranged from 10°C/minute to 100°C/minute and the effect of isothermal ageing at intermediate temperatures was also studied. The extent of the phase transformation after each regime was determined using synchrotron X-ray diffraction. The findings have important implications for the manufacture of solder joints and their in-service performance... First published in the 2012 IPC APEX EXPO technical conference proceedings.......

Publisher: Nihon Superior Co., Ltd.

Nihon Superior Co., Ltd.

Nihon has been a leader in soldering and brazing since 1966. Nihon manufactures SMT solder joining materials e.g. lead-free solder (SN100C:Sn-Cu-Ni-Ge etc): solder paste, solder spheres, flux cored solder wire, solder bar, etc.

Osaka, Japan

Bringing Rapid Prototyping In-House - A White Paper for RF/Microwave Executives

Feb 22, 2013 | LPKF

Productivity. Innovation. Time to market. Day to day, year over year, businesses are forced to make critical R.O.I.—related decisions that impact the future and the bottom line—some of them reactionary, some forecasted. For a growing number of electronics manufacturers, many of those decisions revolve around whether a function should be performed by an outside contractor or kept in-house. But for many companies in the RF/microwave industry, this decision is often concerned with continuing to employ an outside PCB fabricator for prototype PCBs, or to make a $10,000 to $100,000 investment in an inhouse, rapid PCB prototyping machine that may represent a key competitive advantage....

Publisher: LPKF Laser & Electronics

LPKF Laser & Electronics

With its broad product range LPKF is one of the world market leaders in the "in-house rapid PCB prototyping" and "StencilLaser" services

Tualatin, Oregon, USA

Agilent Technologies, Inc.

Boundary Scan Advanced Diagnostic Methods

Feb 14, 2013 | Christopher Cain

Boundary-scan (1149.1) technology was originally developed to provide a far easier method to perform digital DC testing to detect intra-IC interconnect assembly faults, such as solder shorts and opens. Today's advanced IC technology now includes high-speed differential interfaces that include AC or DC coupling components loaded on the printed circuit assembly. Simple stuck-at-high/low test methods are not sufficient to detect all assembly fault conditions, which includes shorts, opens and missing components. Improved diagnostics requires detailed circuit analysis, predictive assembly fault simulation and more complex testing to isolate and accurately detect all possible assembly faults... First published in the 2012 IPC APEX EXPO technical conference proceedings...

Publisher: Agilent Technologies, Inc.

World's premier measurement company, providing the critical tools and technologies that sense, measure, and interpret the physical and biological world.

Loveland, Colorado, USA

Avoiding the Solder Void

Feb 08, 2013 | Richard Lathrop

Solder voiding is present in the majority solder joints and is generally accepted when the voids are small and the total void content is minimal. X-ray methods are the predominate method for solder void analysis but this method can be quite subjective for non grid array components due to the two dimensional aspects of X-ray images and software limitations. A novel method of making a copper "sandwich" to simulate under lead and under component environs during reflow has been developed and is discussed in detail. This method has enabled quantitative solder paste void analysis for lead free and specialty paste development and process refinement. Profile and paste storage effects on voiding are discussed. Additionally an optimal design and material selection from a solder void standpoint for a heat spreader on a BCC (Bumpered Chip Carrier) has been developed and is discussed....

Publisher: Heraeus

Heraeus

We design and manufacture SMT assembly materials.

W. Conshohocken, Pennsylvania, USA