Global Electronics Association Knowledge Hub

At present there are a large number of materials that have been proposed as replacements for lead containing solder for reflow and wave and selective soldering. Unlike solder paste in a reflow .. read more

Little data has been generated on the performance of lead-free solders under vibration and mechanical shock. What data exists suggests that lead-free solders may be less reliable than eutectic .. read more

This presentation will review the findings of a HDPUG consortia effort to evaluate 29 different bare board material and stack-up combinations and their associated performance after 6X Pb-free r .. read more

The formation during the soldering process of the layer of intermetallic compound Cu6Sn5 at the solder substrate interface provides the essential evidence that a metallurgical bond that is the .. read more

For many of the Pb-free solders required under the European RoHS directive,there is now sufficient information,primarily in the form of the results of accelerated thermal cycling of various lev .. read more

This presentation discusses critical material properties and test data that are often overlooked in the introduction of new lead-free solder alloys,but are critical to alloy comparison and the .. read more

This paper will explore the most common alternatives to hot air-leveled solder (HASL) as a finish for flex circuits and some of the issues one may want to be aware of when converting. Whether t .. read more

Lead-free selective soldering can result in extended times at high temperatures,which in turn can result in excessive dissolution of exposed copper,such as plated through holes. This phenomenon .. read more

The high temperature exposures associated with lead-free soldering of printed circuit boards (PCBs) can alter the laminate material properties thereby creating a shift in the performance and re .. read more

The cracking and delamination of printed circuit boards (PCB) during exposure to elevated thermal exposure,such as reflow and rework,have always been a concern for the electronics industry. How .. read more

For decades the manufacturers of electronic components have furnished products that were most compatible with soldering processes that employed a eutectic alloy composition that contained tin a .. read more

Though the electronics industry is nearing the 3-year anniversary marking the ban of lead from electronics products,several challenges still remain with existing lead-free materials for certain .. read more

The plated thru hole has changed considerably in 50 years of electronic packaging,but in its many forms remains the most common interconnection in 1st and 2nd level electronic packaging,and is .. read more

Although the advantages of Hot Air Solder Leveling (HASL) in providing the most robust solderable finish for printed circuit boards are well recognized,in the years leading up to the implementa .. read more

The New England Lead Free Consortium,composed of many companies in the electronic supply chain in the regional area and chaired by the author; has embarked on an extensive long term reliability .. read more

As the electronic industry moves to lead-free assembly and finer-pitch circuits,widely used printed wiring board (PWB) finish,SnPb HASL,has been replaced with lead-free and coplanar PWB finishe .. read more

Hot gas rework of BGAs with a mirrored BGA design configuration using SnAgCu based lead-free alloys is more challenging as compared to conventional SnPb techniques. Rework of BGAs using a conve .. read more

During lead-free wave soldering or rework operation for through hole components,high rate copper dissolution may occur to printed wiring boards. It is widely believed that Sn-Ag-Cu (SAC) lead-f .. read more

Implementation of lead-free assembly processes results in higher copper dissolution rate than traditional SnPb alloys. The rate at which copper is dissolved could be dependent on many factors,s .. read more

As some of the reliability issues and cost associated with tin silver copper solders become more apparent,alternative pb-free solder formulations are being considered. Of particular interest ar .. read more

Flux technology for lead-free alloys differs considerably from that for eutectic Sn/Pb solder systems,mainly for soldering and cleaning purpose. For most of the lead-free solders,paste handling .. read more

Since July 1st 2006,the 2002/95/EC RoHS European directive has forced the electronic industry to switch from Tin-Lead to lead-free soldering alloys for components assembly. Exemption domains ha .. read more

Although the official implementation of the EU Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) directive officially started on July 1,2006,a significant portion of the avionics electronics supply ch .. read more

Highly dense circuit assemblies increase the cleaning challenge. Batch cleaning equipment designs provide a small footprint,low cleaning fluid consumption,and low cost of ownership. Batch clean .. read more

This paper will discuss the technical challenges associated with the selection of chemical additive for the printed circuit board assembly (PCBA) and stencil cleaning processes. The removal of .. read more

The SMT industry is going through a challenging phase of assembling miniature components,such as micro BGA,0.3mm CSP and 01005 passives onto Printed Circuit Boards (PCB). This effort is primari .. read more

The recent use of lead free alloys has made the wave solder process more challenging in terms of achieving acceptable solder joints for both SMT and PTH components. It has been found that the D .. read more

Tombstoning,the phenomena where a chip component stands up on one end during the reflow cycle,is well-documented and understood in tin-lead systems. It is reported to occur more frequently in l .. read more

As the use of area array connectors has become more widespread in electronic assemblies,the need to evaluate their reliability has increased. There is,however,limited information on how best to .. read more

This paper reports the results of an evaluation of tin mitigation processes for components,i.e. converting parts with pure tin (Sn) and other lead-free (Pb-free) finishes to tin-lead (SnPb) fin .. read more

Failure analysis was performed on fourteen thermally cycled or vibration tested PDIP components from the JCAA-JG-PP Lead-Free Joint Test Project. The components differed in component finish,sol .. read more

The change to lead-free solders has forced the electronics industry to consider more than it ever has before what properties are important in a solder. When the tin-lead eutectic was the only s .. read more

Recent industry trends have focused around alternatives for the commonly used SAC305 or SAC405 alloys for wave soldering and solder fountain rework processes. Industry consortia are currently f .. read more

In general,new lead-free solder alloys with the following characteristics are desired in order to enable the continuation of miniaturization trend: (1) alloy with a reduced melting temperature, .. read more

The increasing use of lead-free solder has introduced a new set of process parameters when setting up wave solder equipment for effective soldering. Determining the proper flow characteristics .. read more

Advancements and evolutions in printed circuit board manufacturing,design,and electronics assembly have driven new research on high temperature organic solderability preservative (HT OSP) surfa .. read more

As new generations of electronic products emerge they often surpass the capability of existing packaging and interconnection technology and the infrastructure needed to support newer technologi .. read more

As the electronics industry prepares for the possibility of Pb-free Printed Circuit Board Assembly (PCBA) processing without the EU RoHS server Pb solder exemption,many studies continue to focu .. read more

Increased functionality and smaller devices are significant drivers in innovative packaging designs. One of the newer package types to be introduced into the market place in the past few years .. read more

It is clear that the future belongs to the ever shrinking component. Micro Lead Frame (MLF) components,and specifically the Quad Flat No-lead (QFN) packages have gained wide scale acceptance. .. read more

Corrosion of solder pots and solder pot components in wave soldering equipment has been reduced with the introduction of corrosion resistant coatings and improved lead free solder alloys. The l .. read more

Organic Solderability Preservatives (OSP) continue to attract significant attention as circuit board final finishes. They have evolved from simple and thin benzotriazole coatings to thicker and .. read more

The pressure on manufacturers of electronic devices to continually reduce the cost of products has continued,despite the challenges of higher cost lead-free production. In many cases assemblers .. read more

This paper provides a high-level overview of many of the key lessons learned thus far in working with PCB fabricators in qualifying laminate/fabrication processes that will yield fundamental pr .. read more

In this paper,factors that influence the ability for a flex circuit,especially a multilayer flex circuit,to survive the lead-free soldering and other thermal processes during the circuit fabric .. read more

The purpose of this program was to evaluate the solder joint reliability,using the IPC-9701 standard as a guideline,of PCBAs that were assembled with conventional leaded and ROHS compliant lead .. read more

Soldering with lead-free solders has become an international standard. A study conducted by the Dresden Technical University and rehm Anlagenbau examines which influences various parameters hav .. read more

The whisker concern has been greatly affecting lead free RoHS conversion confidence in the lead frame packages,particularly for high end product conversion. Although plenty of related study in .. read more

The reliability of aged and repaired lead-free and mixed lead-free/lead-based solder interconnects is an important issue for electronic equipment manufacturers. As a result of the global transi .. read more

The migration to lead free reflow is bringing many challenges for the PCB industry. High Tg laminates,stability of materials thru 2X reflows,rework,moisture sensitivity etc. This requires caref .. read more