Electronics Manufacturing Technical Articles

Introduction to the manufacturing process of anti static ic tubes

Jan 20, 2019 | James tong

With the rapid development of the electronics industry, more and more components such as integrated circuits and connectors, relays, power modules, etc. need to be packaged with IC tubes. The anti static ic tubes is actually a kind of pvc plastic(reference to : What are the materials for IC tubes) profile, the size varies with the shape of the installed product, the precision requirement is high, the wall thickness should be controlled within ±0.1mm, and the surface is required to have no impurity spots, smooth and transparent. The IC packaging tubes produced by Sewate Technology Co., Ltd. are extruded. The typical process flow is: extrusion, vacuum adsorption setting, traction, fixed length cutting and directional discharge, deburring, immersion antistatic liquid, drying, testing, packaging and storage ...

Publisher: Shenzhen Sewate Technology Co.,Ltd

Optical Bonding

Jan 10, 2019 | Scheugenpflug

We notice that the quantities of material that are to be dosed are becoming more and more divergent. In addition to large media volumes, small and very small quantities are also increasingly coming into focus. For example autonomous driving: These vehicles already produce an immense amount of data today. When potting the associated sensors, cameras, and ECUs, it is important to ensure a precise and repeatable media application – even with volumes of only 0.03 ml. In contrast, when high-voltage batteries for electric cars are potted, 5 to 10 litres of heat-conducting paste are required per vehicle – and the trend is rising. Optical bonding used in display production, on the other hand, is in the medium volume range. The challenge now is to cover the entire volume spectrum reliably and in compliance with the required cycle times. This is remedied by a modular system of scalable modules, which offers the customer the necessary flexibility and enables him to plan a system according to his needs....

Publisher: Scheugenpflug Inc.

Bad Block Management in SSD

Jan 10, 2019 | Miya

Why do large number of bad blocks generate when SSDs close their lifespan? What's impact on SSDs nomral usage? And how does SSD manage the bad blocks? Just let's take a look at the bad block management in SSDs....

Publisher: Renice Technology Co., Ltd

An Investigation into Lead-Free Low Silver Cored Solder Wire for Electronics Manufacturing Applications

Jan 09, 2019 | Shantanu Joshi, Jasbir Bath, Kimiaki Mori, Kazuhiro Yukikata, Roberto Garcia, Takeshi Shirai

The electronics industry has widely adopted Sn-3.0Ag-0.5Cu solder alloys for lead-free reflow soldering applications and tin-copper based alloys for wave soldering applications. In automated soldering or rework operations, users may work with Sn-Ag-Cu or Sn-Cu based alloys. One of the challenges with these types of lead-free alloys for automated / hand soldering operations, is that the life of the soldering iron tips will shorten drastically using lead-free solders with an increased cost of soldering iron tool maintenance/ tip replacement. Development was done on a new lead-free low silver solder rework alloy (Sn-0.3Ag-0.7Cu-0.04Co) in comparison with a number of alternative lead-free alloys including Sn-0.3Ag-0.7Cu, Sn-0.7Cu and Sn-3.0Ag-0.5Cu and tin-lead Sn40Pb solder in soldering evaluations....

Publisher: Koki Company LTD

What are the materials for plastic anti static ic tubes?

Jan 08, 2019 | James tong

Plastic ic tubes can be made of plastics of various materials such as PVC, PS, PET, PC, ABS, etc. The shipping tubes of different materials will have different performances. The characteristics of various materials and their packaging tubes are described in detail below;...

Publisher: Shenzhen Sewate Technology Co.,Ltd

How to identify quality IC Shipping Tube guide

Jan 03, 2019 | James tong

With the increase of labor costs, the popularity of automated production lines, • Antistatic ic tubes, connector shipping tubes, power module shipping tubes, LED shipping tubes, relay shipping tubes and other electronic components tubes are also becoming more widely used. Many small companies blindly pursue low-priced packaging materials, and there is no requirement for quality. When it is later discovered that the parts are stuck in the packaging process, they will regret it when they crush the parts during transportation. Shenzhen Sewate Technology Co., Ltd. tells you about six ways to identify quality packaging tubes....

Publisher: Shenzhen Sewate Technology Co.,Ltd

Risk Mitigation in Hand Soldering

Jan 02, 2019 | Robert Roush

Failed solder joints remain a constant source of printed circuit board failure. Soldering is the bonding of metallic surfaces via an intermetallic compound (IMC). The interaction between thermal energy delivery, flux chemistry, and solder chemistry creates the solder bond or joint. Today, reliability relies on visual inspection; operator experience and skill, control of influencers e.g. tip geometry, tip temperature, and collection and analysis of process data. Each factor involved with the formation of the solder joint is an element of risk and can affect either throughput or repeatability. Mitigating this risk in hand soldering requires the identification of these factors and a means to address them....

Publisher: Metcal

Jetting of Isotropic Conductive Adhesives with Silver Coated Polymer Particles

Dec 26, 2018 | Gustaf Mårtensson

The development of novel interconnection materials for production of electronics is of considerable interest to fulfill increasing demands on interconnect reliability in increasingly demanding environments with respect to temperature extremes, mechanical stresses and/or production limitations. Adhesives are playing an increasingly significant role in the continuously evolving electronics industry. (...)

Specific applications will be presented that highlight the feasibility of the technology with respect to conductivity, structural reliability and lifetime standards. The deposition of the novel ICA has been performed using a jet printing technology to ensure both precise and accurate positioning, size and volume delivery....

Publisher: Mycronic AB

Process Optimization for Fine Feature Solder Paste Dispensing

Dec 19, 2018 | Maria Durham, Greg Wade, and Brandon Judd; Indium Corporation, John Boggiatto; ITW EAE - Speedline Technologies

With the rapid trend towards miniaturization in surface mount and MEMs lid-attach technology, it is becoming increasingly challenging to dispense solder paste in ultra-fine dot applications such as those involving chip capacitors or BGA packages, as well as dispensing ultra-fine lines in MEMs lid-attach applications. In order to achieve ultra-fine dots and fine line widths while dispensing solder paste, both the solder material and dispensing equipment need to be optimized. Optimizing the equipment can be very challenging, as there are many input variables that can affect the dispense quality of the solder paste. In this paper we will evaluate the many equipment variables involved in the solder paste dispensing process, and the impact these variables have on the dispense quality of the solder paste....

Publisher: Indium Corporation

Assembly Reliability of TSOP/DFN PoP Stack Package

Dec 12, 2018 | Reza Ghaffarian, Ph.D.

Numerous 3D stack packaging technologies have been implemented by industry for use in microelectronics memory applications. This paper presents a reliability evaluation of a particular package-on-package (PoP) that offers a reduction in overall PCB board area requirements while allowing for increases in functionality. It utilizes standard, readily available device packaging methods in which high-density packaging is achieved by: (1) using standard "packaged" memory devices, (2) using standard 3-dimensional (3-D) interconnect assembly. The stacking approach provides a high level of functional integration in well-established and already functionally tested packages. The stack packages are built from TSOP packages with 48 leads, stacked either 2-high or 4-high, and integrated into a single dual-flat-no-lead (DFN) package....

Publisher: Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Multilayer Ceramic Capacitors: Mitigating Rising Failure Rates

Dec 05, 2018 | Dock Brown

The multilayer ceramic capacitor (MLCC) has become a widely used electronics component both for surface mount and embedded PCB applications. The MLCC technologies have gone through a number of material and process changes such as the shift from precious metal electrode (PME) configurations which were predominantly silver/palladium to base metal electrodes (BME) dominated by nickel. Each of these changes were accompanied by both quality and reliability problems. The MLCC industry is now in the midst of an unprecedented set of challenges similar to the Moore’s Law challenges being faced by the semiconductor industry. While capacitor failures have historically been responsible for a significant percentage of product field failures (most estimates are ~30%) we are seeing disturbing developments in the low voltage (<250V) commodity part infant mortality and wearout failure rates....

Publisher: DfR Solutions (acquired by ANSYS Inc)

Process Control of Ionic Contamination Achieving 6-Sigma Criteria in The Assembly of Electronic Circuits

Nov 29, 2018 | P. Eckold, M. Routley, L. Henneken, G. Naisbitt, R. Fritsch, U. Welzel

Ionic contamination testing as a process control tool a newly developed testing protocol based on IPC-TM 650 2.3.25, was established to enable monitoring of ionic contamination within series production. The testing procedure was successfully implemented within the production of high reliability, safety critical electronic circuits, involving multiple production sites around the world. I will be shown in this paper that the test protocol is capable for meeting Six-Sigma-Criteria....

Publisher: Robert Bosch LLC Automotive Electronics Division

How to choose a reliable CF Card for VDR

Nov 22, 2018 | Miya

VDR (Voyage Data Recorder) is an instrument continuously recording real-time data of ship body, including speech communication signal of cockpit, sensors data, alarm status and radar images, etc.. So what's types of storage devices may meet VDR's requirement?...

Publisher: Renice Technology Co., Ltd

Understanding the Effect of Different Heating Cycles on Post-Soldering Flux Residues and the Impact on Electrical Performance

Nov 20, 2018 | Brook Sandy-Smith, Indium Corporation and Terry Munson, Foresite Inc.

There are several industry-accepted methods for determining the reliability of flux residues after assembly. The recommended methods of test sample preparation do not always closely mimic the thermal cycle experienced by an assembly. Therefore, extraction from actual assemblies has become a popular method of process control to assess consistency of post-reflow cleanliness. Every method of post-reflow flux residue characterization will depend on the reflow process followed to prepare the coupon.

This investigation will focus on the effect of thermal conditions on the remainder of active ingredients in flux residues after assembly with no-clean solder pastes....

Publisher: Indium Corporation

Status and Outlooks of Flip Chip Technology

Nov 14, 2018 | John H. Lau

Status of flip chip technology such as wafer bumping, package substrate, flip chip assembly, and underfill will be reviewed in this study. Emphasis is placed on the latest developments of these areas in the past few years. Their future trends will also be recommended. Finally, the competition on flip chip technology will be briefly mentioned....

Publisher: ASM Pacific Technology

Laser-Based Methodology for the Application of Glass as a Dielectric and Cu Pattern Carrier for Printed Circuit Boards

Nov 07, 2018 | Joel Schrauben, Cameron Tribe, Christopher Ryder and Jan Kleinert

Glass offers a number of advantages as a dielectric material, such as a low coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE), high dimensional stability, high thermal conductivity and suitable dielectric constant. These properties make glass an ideal candidate for, among other things, package substrate and high-frequency PCB applications.

We report here a novel process for the production of printed circuit boards and integrated circuit packaging using glass as both a dielectric medium and a platform for wiring simultaneously....

Publisher: Electro Scientific Industries

Possible reasons for simultaneous solder skip and short circuit of BGA

Nov 07, 2018 | Rita Li --Seamark Zhuomao technology

Generally speaking, there are not many cases of insufficient solder and solder short in BGA soldering, but it is not impossible. Here we discuss some elements may cause it...

Publisher: Seamark Zhuomao Photoeletric technology(Shenzhen)CO., ltd

Study of the Rheological Behaviors of Solder Pastes

Nov 06, 2018 | Michal KRAVČÍK, Igor VEHEC

Solder paste is a homogeneous, stable suspension of solder powder particles suspended in a flux binder, and is one of the most important process materials today in surface mount technology (SMT). By varying the solder particle size, distribution and shape, as well as the other constituent materials, the rheology and printing performance of solder pastes can be controlled. Paste flow behavior is very important in defining the printing performance of any paste.

The purpose of this paper is to study the rheological behavior of SAC (Sn-Ag-Cu) solder paste used for surface mount applications in the electronic industry. The reason why the rheological tests are presented in this paper are two critical sub-processes: aperture filling and paste withdraw. In this paper, we report on the investigation of the rheological profiles, the serrated cone-to-plate system was found as effective in parameter minimizing the wall-slip effect...

Publisher: Technical University of Košice

High Throw DC Acid Copper Formulation for Vertical Continuous Electroplating Processes

Oct 31, 2018 | Saminda Dharmarathna, PhD, Ivan Li, PhD, Maddux Sy, Eileen Zeng, Bob Wei, William Bowerman, Kesheng Feng, PhD

The electronics industry has grown immensely over the last few decades owing to the rapid growth of consumer electronics in the modern world. New formulations are essential to fit the needs of manufacturing printed circuit boards and semiconductors. Copper electrolytes for high throwing power applications with high thermal reliability and high throughput are becoming extremely important for manufacturing high aspect ratio circuit boards.

Here we discuss innovative DC copper metallization formulations for hoist lines and VCP (Vertical Continues Plating) applications with high thermal reliability and throughput for high aspect ratio PCB manufacturing...

Publisher: MacDermid Inc.

QPlan - NPI Tools included

Oct 29, 2018 | Alexei Shkolnik from Proventus Technologies

We found that NPI process of SMT is mostly similar and sometimes overlapping to tooling process. In addition, in most cases the programmer is part of the team working on the NPI process. So, QPlan was extended with NPI Tools as a part of tooling process. This allows the team to carry out the NPI process at offline. And at the end of it, they can create corrected SMT program at zero time....

Publisher: Proventus Technologies

Rosin Resins Solution for Soldering Industry

Oct 26, 2018 | Jack Su

A product whitepaper of modified resins for soldering industry....

Publisher: Foreverest Resources Ltd.

Durable Conductive Inks and SMD Attachment for Robust Printed Electronics

Oct 24, 2018 | Leonard Allison

Polymer Thick Film (PTF)-based printed electronics (aka Printed Electronics) has improved in durability over the last few decades and is now a proven alternative to copper circuitry in many applications once thought beyond the capability of PTF circuitry. This paper describes peak performance and areas for future improvement.

State-of-the-art PTF circuitry performance includes the ability to withstand sharp crease tests, 85C/85%RH damp heat 5VDC bias aging (silver migration), auto seat durability cycling, SMT mandrel flexing, and others. The IPC/SGIA subcommittee for Standards Tests development has adopted several ASTM test methods for PTF circuitry and is actively developing needed improvements or additions. These standards are described herein. Advantages of PTF circuitry over copper include: varied conductive material compositions, lower cost and lower environmental impact. Necessary improvements include: robust integration of chip and power, higher conductivity, and fine line multi-layer patterning....

Publisher: Engineered Materials Systems, Inc.

SMT Troubleshooting Guide

Oct 20, 2018 | Cookson Electronics

With this easy-to-use Troubleshooting Guide, you can learn to troubleshoot common SMT issues. After using it a few times, it will become an essential companion for you and anyone in your company responsible for operating an SMT line.

This Guide offers troubleshooting advice for common SMT assembly issues by process defect. If your issue is not resolved after following the steps to help identify the possible root cause and solution, please contact your Cookson Electronics representative who will be able to provide you with further assistance....

Publisher: Cookson Electronics

Analysis of the Design Variables of Thermoforming Process on the Performance of Printed Electronic Traces

Oct 18, 2018 | Gill M., Gruner A., Ghalib N., Sussman M., Avuthu S., Wable G, Richstein J.

One specific market space of interest to emerging printed electronics is In Mold Label (IML) technology. IML is used in many consumer products and white good applications. When combined with electronics, the In Mold Electronics (IME) adds compelling new product functionality. Many of these products have multi-dimensional features and therefore require thermoforming processes in order to prepare the labels before they are in-molded. While thermoforming is not a novel technique for IML, the addition of printed electronic functional traces is not well documented. There is little or no published work on printed circuit performance and design interactions in the thermoforming process that could inform improved IME product designs. A general full factorial Design of Experiments (DOE) was used to analyze the electrical performance of the conductive silver ink trace/polycarbonate substrate system. Variables of interest include trace width, height of draw, and radii of both top and bottom curvatures in the draw area. Thermoforming tooling inserts were fabricated for eight treatment combinations of these variables. Each sample has one control and two formed strips. Electrical measurements were taken of the printed traces on the polymer sheets pre- and post- forming with a custom fixture to evaluate the effect on resistance. The design parameters found to be significant were draw height and bottom radius, with increased draw and smaller bottom curvature radii both contributing to the circuits’ resistance degradation. Over the ranges evaluated, the top curvature radii had no effect on circuit resistance. Interactions were present, demonstrating that circuit and thermoforming design parameters need to be studied as a system. While significant insight impacting product development was captured further work will be executed to evaluate different ink and substrate material sets, process variables, and their role in IME....

Publisher: Jabil Circuit, Inc.

3D Printed Electronics for Printed Circuit Structures

Oct 10, 2018 | Samuel LeBlanc, Paul Deffenbaugh, Jacob Denkins, Kenneth Church

Printed electronics is a familiar term that is taking on more meaning as the technology matures. Flexible electronics is sometimes referred to as a subset of this and the printing approach is one of the enabling factors for roll to roll processes. Printed electronics is improving in performance and has many applications that compete directly with printed circuit boards. The advantage of roll to roll is the speed of manufacturing, the large areas possible, and a reduction in costs. As this technology continues to mature, it is also merging with the high profile 3D printing. (...)

This paper will show working demonstrations of printed circuit structures, the obstacles, and the potential future of 3D printed electronics....

Publisher: nScrypt Inc.

Fill the Void II: An Investigation into Methods of Reducing Voiding

Oct 03, 2018 | Tony Lentz - FCT Assembly, Patty Chonis, JB Byers - A-Tek Systems

Voids in solder joints plague many electronics manufacturers. Do you have voids in your life? We have good news for you, there are many excellent ways to "Fill the Void." This paper is a continuation of previous work on voiding in which the following variables were studied: water soluble lead-free solder pastes, a variety of stencil designs, and reflow profiles. Quad Flat No-Lead (QFN) component thermal pads were used as the test vehicle. The voiding results were summarized and recommendations were made for reduction of voiding....

Publisher: FCT ASSEMBLY, INC.

Assessing the Effectiveness of I/O Stencil Aperture Modifications on BTC Void Reduction

Sep 26, 2018 | Carlos Tafoya, Gustavo Ramirez, Timothy O’Neill

Bottom terminated components, or BTCs, have been rapidly incorporated into PCB designs because of their low cost, small footprint and overall reliability. The combination of leadless terminations with underside ground/thermal pads have presented a multitude of challenges to PCB assemblers, including tilting, poor solder fillet formation, difficult inspection and – most notably – center pad voiding. Voids in large SMT solder joints can be difficult to predict and control due to the variety of input variables that can influence their formation. Solder paste chemistries, PCB final finishes, and reflow profiles and atmospheres have all been scrutinized, and their effects well documented. Additionally, many of the published center pad voiding studies have focused on optimizing center pad footprint and stencil aperture designs. This study focuses on I/O pad stencil modifications rather than center pad modifications. It shows a no-cost, easily implemented I/O design guideline that can be deployed to consistently and repeatedly reduce void formation on BTC-style packages....

Publisher: AIM Solder

Moisture Measurements in PCBs and Impact of Design on Desorption Behaviour

Sep 21, 2018 | Chris Hunt, Owen Thomas, Martin Wickham

Moisture accumulates during storage and industry practice recommends specific levels of baking to avoid delamination. This paper will discuss the use of capacitance measurements to follow the absorption and desorption behaviour of moisture. The PCB design used in this work, focused on the issue of baking out moisture trapped between copper planes. The PCB was designed with different densities of plated through holes and drilled holes in external copper planes, with capacitance sensors located on the inner layers. For trapped volumes between copper planes, the distance between holes proved to be critical in affecting the desorption rate. For fully saturated PCBs, the desorption time at elevated temperatures was observed to be in the order of hundreds of hours. Finite difference diffusion modelling was carried out for moisture desorption behaviour for plated through holes and drilled holes in copper planes. A meshed copper plane was also modelled evaluating its effectiveness for assisting moisture removal and decreasing bake times. Results also showed, that in certain circumstances, regions of the PCB under copper planes initially increase in moisture during baking....

Publisher: National Physical Laboratory

Supply Chain Security: DFARS - Detection & Avoidance of Counterfeit Electronic Parts

Sep 19, 2018 | Robert S. Metzger

Coverage

• The threat of counterfeit electronics
• The statute - Section 818 NDAA FY 2012
• The DFARS – Detection & Avoidance of Counterfeit Electronic Parts – Revised August 2016

Publisher: Rogers Joseph O’Donnell, P.C.

Counterfeit Electronic Components Identification: A Case Study

Sep 12, 2018 | Martin Goetz, Ramesh Varma

Counterfeit electronic components are finding their way into today’s defense electronics. The problem gets even more complex when procuring DMS (diminishing manufacturing source) parts. This paper will provide a brief introduction to counterfeit prevention and detection standards, particularly as they relate to the Aerospace and Defense sector. An analysis of industry information on the types and nature of counterfeit components will be discussed in order to illustrate those most likely to be counterfeited, followed a specific case at a major defense contractor....

Publisher: Northrop Grumman Corporation

Moisture and Bubble-Free Material Preparation in Larger Quantities

Sep 10, 2018 | Scheugenpflug

Issue: Moisture and bubbles in your dispensing material with larger quantities Solution: Scheugenpflug’s 55-gal Barrel Agitator Station Barrel agitators for casting resins take their technology from the paint sector. They fall short of meeting the special demands of the auto, medical, aeronautics and electronics industries. They can’t guarantee a solid seal on the barrels – often containing expensive, moisture sensitive resins – allowing the humidity of the surrounding environment to damage the material. Also, conventional barrel agitators, as opposed to smaller units, cannot work in a vacuum to process materials directly....

Publisher: Scheugenpflug Inc.

Improved Flux Reliability of Lead-Free Solder Alloy Solder Paste Formulated with Rosin and Anti-Crack Resin for Automotive and Other High Reliability Applications

Sep 05, 2018 | Shantanu Joshi, Jasbir Bath, Mitsuyasu Furusawa, Junichi Aoki, Roberto Garcia, Manabu Itoh

In recent years, a growing number of electronic devices are being incorporated into automotive and other high reliability end products where the challenge is to make these devices more reliable. The package size of the devices is largely driven by the consumer industry with their sizes getting smaller making it harder to assemble and be reliable at the same time. For automotive and other high reliability electronics product, it is of the utmost priority to secure high reliability because it directly involves human life and safety. Challenges include selecting an appropriate solder alloy and having good reliability of the solder paste flux....

Publisher: Koki Company LTD

Does Thermal Cycling Impact the Electrical Reliability of a No-Clean Solder Paste Flux Residue

Aug 29, 2018 | Eric Bastow

No-clean solder pastes are widely used in a number of applications that are exposed to wide variations in temperature during the life of the assembled electronics device. Some have observed that cracks can and do form in flux residue and have postulated that this is the result of or exacerbated by temperature cycling. Furthermore, the potential exists for the flux residue to soften or liquefy at elevated temperatures, and even flow if orientated parallel to gravity. In situations such as in automotive electronics, where significant temperature cycling is a reality and high reliability is a must, concern sometimes exists that the cracking and possible softening or liquefying of the residue may have a deleterious effect on the electrical reliability of the flux residue. This paper will attempt to address this concern....

Publisher: Indium Corporation

To dispense material under vacuum or dispense degassed material in atmosphere ….that is the question

Aug 23, 2018 | Scheugenpflug

Simply put, the proper system design and use of vacuum in the potting process can make the difference between a mediocre part and a perfect part. Air entrapment is inevitable whether you utilize syringes, cartridges, pails, or drums of material in the process....

Publisher: Scheugenpflug Inc.

Board-Level Thermal Cycling and Drop-Test Reliability of Large, Ultrathin Glass BGA Packages for Smart Mobile Applications

Aug 22, 2018 | Bhupender Singh, Gary Menezes, Scott McCann, Vidya Jayaram, Urmi Ray, Venky Sundaram, Raj Pulugurtha, Vanessa Smet, Rao Tummala

Glass substrates are emerging as a key alternative to silicon and conventional organic substrates for high-density and high-performance systems due to their outstanding dimensional stability, enabling sub-5-µm lithographic design rules, excellent electrical performance, and unique mechanical properties, key in achieving board-level reliability at body sizes larger than 15 × 15 mm2.

This paper describes the first demonstration of the board-level reliability of such large, ultrathin glass ball grid array (BGA) packages directly mounted onto a system board, considering both their thermal cycling and drop-test performances....

Publisher: Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)

Demystifying Adhesive Dispensing within the High-End Appliance Industry

Aug 16, 2018 | Scheugenpflug Inc.

Appliance designers are constantly evolving to satisfy the ever changing wants and needs of their consumer base. These changes filter down and include not only the materials but also the equipment used to dispense the material in the manufacturing processes. Moreover, the latest evolution of appliances also seeks to add luxury controls and eye-catching applications. This challenge then, of new applications and material dispensing, often means the application and execution of these increasingly complex materials present multiple challenges up and down the appliance supply chain. Successfully meeting the material dispensing challenge has the potential to spur growth significantly in the higher-end appliance industry as the manufacturing adhesion processes evolve to meet market demand....

Publisher: Scheugenpflug Inc.

Reliable Young's Modulus Value of High Flexible, Treated Rolled Copper Foils Measured by Resonance Method

Aug 15, 2018 | Kazuki Kammuri, Atsushi Miki, Hiroki Takeuchi

Smartphones and tablets require very high flexibility and severe bending performance ability of the flexible printed circuits (FPCs) to fit into their thinner and smaller body designs. In these FPCs, the extraordinary highly flexible, treated rolled-annealed (RA) copper foils have recently used instead of regular RA foil and electro deposited foils. It is very important to measure the Young's moduli of these foils predicting the mechanical properties of FPCs such as capabilities of fatigue endurance, folding, and so on. Even though the manufacturers use IPC TM-650 2.4.18.3 test method for measuring Young's modulus of copper foils over many years, where Young's modulus is calculated from the stress–strain (S–S) curve, it is quite difficult to obtain the accurate Young's modulus of metal foils by this test method....

Publisher: JX Nippon Mining & Metals

New Phosphorus-based Curing Agents for PWB

Aug 08, 2018 | A. Piotrowski, M. Zhang, S. Levchik - ICL-IP, Y. Zilberman, Eran Gluz - IMI

As a result of the continuous industrial trend towards high density packaging there is a growing demand for highly thermally-stable laminate materials. Although the epoxy resin defines the thermal stability, often the flame retardant used becomes the limiting factor in achieving a higher stability. Recognizing this industrial need, the company has developed a new flame-retardant curing agent, Material A. This is a phosphorus-based polymer which cures epoxy via a very specific mechanism. Common Novolac epoxy resins cured with Material A and a phenol-formaldehyde resin show a Tg >180 °C and Td >400 °C. In addition to a high thermal stability, Material A also shows a dielectric loss factor lower than commercial phosphorus-based flame retardants....

Publisher: ICL-IP

Best Practices for Improving the PCB Supply Chain: Performing the Process Audit

Aug 03, 2018 | Greg Caswell, Dr. Craig Hillman

In the electronics industry, the quality and reliability of any product is highly dependent upon the capabilities of the manufacturing suppliers. Manufacturing defects are one of the top reasons why companies fail to meet warranty expectations. These problems can result in severe financial pain and eventual loss of market share. What a surprising number of engineers and managers fail to realize is that focusing on processes addresses only part of the issue. Supplier selection also plays a critical role in the success or failure of the final product....

Publisher: DfR Solutions (acquired by ANSYS Inc)

Early Design Review of Boundary Scan in Enhancing Testability and Optimization of Test Strategy

Aug 01, 2018 | Sivakumar Vijayakumar

With complexities of PCB design scaling and manufacturing processes adopting to environmentally friendly practices raise challenges in ensuring structural quality of PCBs. This makes it essential to have a good 'Design for Test' (DFT) to ensure a robust structural test. (...)

During the course of the DFT review, can we realize a good test strategy for the PCBA. How can the test strategy of the PCBA be partitioned as to what portions of the design can be covered structurally and what is covered functionally, in a way that provides best diagnostics to discover faults...

Publisher: Keysight Technologies

Expanding IEEE Std 1149.1 Boundary-Scan Architecture Beyond Manufacturing Test of Printed Circuit Board Assembly

Jul 25, 2018 | Jun Balangue

This paper will discuss the expanded use of boundary-scan testing beyond the typical manufacturing test to capture structural defects on a component/devices in a printed circuit board assembly (PCBA). The following topics will be discussed to demonstrate the capability of boundary-scan test system on how we can extend beyond typical manufacturing test: Boundary-scan as a complete manufacturing test system, Boundary-scan implementation during PCBA design stage, Implementation of boundary-scan beyond typical structural testing...

Publisher: Keysight Technologies

Improve SMT Assembly Yields Using Root Cause Analysis in Stencil Design

Jul 18, 2018 | Greg Smith

Reduction of first pass defects in the SMT assembly process minimizes cost, assembly time and improves reliability. These three areas, cost, delivery and reliability determine manufacturing yields and are key in maintaining a successful and profitable assembly process. It is commonly accepted that the solder paste printing process causes the highest percentage of yield challenges in the SMT assembly process. As form factor continues to get smaller, the challenge to obtain 100% yield becomes more difficult.

This paper will identify defects affecting SMT yields in the printing process and discuss their Root Cause. Outer layer copper weight and surface treatment will also be addressed as to their effect on printability. Experiments using leadless and emerging components will be studied and root cause analysis will be presented...

Publisher: FCT ASSEMBLY, INC.

Improving Thermal Cycle and Mechanical Drop Impact Resistance of a Lead-free Tin-Silver-Bismuth-Indium Solder Alloy with Minor Doping of Copper Additive

Jul 11, 2018 | Takehiro Wada, Seiji Tsuchiya, Shantanu Joshi, Roberto Garcia, Kimiaki Mori, Takeshi Shirai

For a demanding automotive electronics assembly, a highly thermal fatigue resistant solder alloy is required, which makes the lead-free Sn-Ag-Cu type solder alloy unusable. Sn-Ag-Bi-In solder alloy is considered as a high reliability solder alloy due to significant improvement in thermal fatigue resistance as compared to a standard Sn-Ag-Cu alloy. The alloy has not only good thermal fatigue properties but it also has superior ductility and tensile strength by appropriate addition of In; however, initial results indicated a sub-par performance in joint reliability when it is soldered on a printed circuit board (PCB) with Electroless Nickel Immersion Gold (ENIG) surface finish. Numerous experiments were performed to find out appropriate alloying element which would help improve the performance on ENIG PCBs. Sn-Ag-Bi-In solder alloys with and without Cu additions were prepared and then tests were carried out to see the performance in a thermal fatigue test and a drop resistance test.to investigate the impact of Cu addition towards the improvement of joint reliability on ENIG finish PCB. Also, the mechanism of such improvement is documented....

Publisher: Koki Company LTD

Inkjet-Printed and Paper-Based Electrochemical Sensors

Jul 03, 2018 | Ryan P. Tortorich, Hamed Shamkhalichenar, Jin-Woo Choi

It is becoming increasingly more important to provide a low-cost point-of-care diagnostic device with the ability to detect and monitor various biological and chemical compounds. Traditional laboratories can be time-consuming and very costly. Through the combination of well-established materials and fabrication methods, it is possible to produce devices that meet the needs of many patients, healthcare and medical professionals, and environmental specialists. Existing research has demonstrated that inkjet-printed and paper-based electrochemical sensors are suitable for this application due to advantages provided by the carefully selected materials and fabrication method. Inkjet printing provides a low cost fabrication method with incredible control over the material deposition process, while paper-based substrates enable pump-free microfluidic devices due to their natural wicking ability. Furthermore, electrochemical sensing is incredibly selective and provides accurate and repeatable quantitative results without expensive measurement equipment. By merging each of these favorable techniques and materials and continuing to innovate, the production of low-cost point-of-care sensors is certainly within reach...

Publisher: Louisiana State University

Flexible Hybrid Circuit Fully Inkjet-Printed: Surface Mount Devices Assembled By Silver Nanoparticles-Based Inkjet Ink

Jun 27, 2018 | J. Arrese, G. Vescio, E. Xuriguera, B. Medina-Rodriguez, A. Cornet, and A. Cirera

Nowadays, inkjet-printed devices such as transistors are still unstable in air and have poor performances. Moreover, the present electronics applications require a high degree of reliability and quality of their properties. In order to accomplish these application requirements, hybrid electronics is fulfilled by combining the advantages of the printing technologies with the surface-mount technology.

In this work, silver nanoparticle-based inkjet ink (AgNP ink) is used as a novel approach to connect surface-mount devices (SMDs) onto inkjet-printed pads, conducted by inkjet printing technology...

Publisher: Universitat de Barcelona

Design for Testability (DFT) to Overcome Functional Board Test Complexities in Manufacturing Test

Jun 20, 2018 | Louis Y. Ungar

Manufacturers test to ensure that the product is built correctly. Shorts, opens, wrong or incorrectly inserted components, even catastrophically faulty components need to be flagged, found and repaired. When all such faults are removed, however, functional faults may still exist at normal operating speed, or even at lower speeds. Functional board test (FBT) is still required, a process that still relies on test engineers’ understanding of circuit functionality and manually developed test procedures. While functional automatic test equipment (ATE) has been reduced considerably in price, FBT test costs have not been arrested. In fact, FBT is a huge undertaking that can take several weeks or months of test engineering development, unacceptably stretching time to market. The alternative, of selling products that have not undergone comprehensive FBT is equally, if not more, intolerable....

Publisher: A.T.E. Solutions, Inc.

1 Liter of Gap Filler in Only 13 Seconds - New Dispensing Solution for the Thermal Management for HV Batteries

Jun 18, 2018 | Scheugenpflug

Thermal influences can significantly compromise the service life, capacity and especially the operational safety of HV batteries. In order to prevent damage due to excessive temperatures, large quantities of heat-conducting potting media are used here. Scheugenpflug has developed a new system solution for fast and reliable application of these materials....

Publisher: Scheugenpflug Inc.

Unlocking The Mystery of Aperture Architecture for Fine Line Printing

Jun 13, 2018 | Clive Ashmore

The art of screen printing solder paste for the surface mount community has been discussed and presented for several decades. However, the impending introduction of passive Metric 0201 devices has reopened the need to re-evaluate the printing process and the influence of stencil architecture. The impact of introducing apertures with architectural dimensions’ sub 150um whilst accommodating the requirements of the standard suite of surface mount connectors, passives and integrated circuits will require a greater knowledge of the solder paste printing process.

The dilemma of including the next generation of surface mount devices into this new heterogeneous environment will create area ratio challenges that fall below todays 0.5 threshold. Within this paper the issues of printing challenging area ratio and their associated aspect ratio will be investigated. The findings will be considered against the next generation of surface mount devices....

Publisher: ASM Assembly Systems GmbH & Co. KG

Potting in a Vacuum or Atmosphere?

Jun 04, 2018 | Scheugenpflug

Potting in a vacuum or atmospheric conditions? This question about the correct procedure concerns many users, among others i.e. electronics manufacturers, who pot more and more complex parts and components for a huge variety of products. Against the actual requirements of product and process, a decision on the procedure is often made under the assumption: „Potting under atmosphere = affordable and easy" and „Potting under vacuum = expensive and difficult". But that's a thing of the past. The way to the correct method, however, requires the clarification of a number of factors....

Publisher: Scheugenpflug Inc.

Green Supply Chain Management, Economic Growth and Environment: A GMM Based Evidence

May 30, 2018 | Syed Abdul Rehman Khan, Yu Zhang, Muhammad Anees, Heris Golpîra, Arij Lahmar, Dong Qianli

The aim of this research is to examine the relationship between green logistics operations and energy demand, economic growth and environmental sustainability need to make factors for relationship clearer in a panel data of 43 different countries around the globe. The study employed panel Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) estimates for robust inferences. The results have revealed that logistics operations consume energy and fossil fuel, while the amount of fossil fuel and non-green energy sources create significant harmful effect on the environmental sustainability and also have negative effect on economic growth. In addition, poor transport-related infrastructure and logistics service are a major contributor of CO2 and total greenhouse gas emissions. However, carbon emission damages fauna and flora, and reduces economic growth. The findings suggest that renewable energy sources and green practices can mitigate harmful effect of logistics operations on environmental sustainability and spur economic activities with greatly export opportunities in a region....

Publisher: Changan University