• Journal of Institute of Control, Robotics and Systems
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• v.5 no.3
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• pp.353-362
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• 1999

This paper presents a shape reconstruction method for automatic inspection of the solder joints on PCBs using X-ray. Shape reconstruction from X-ray radiographic image has been very important since X-ray equipment was used for improving the reliability of inspection result. For this purpose there have been lots of previous works using tomography, which reconstructs the correct shape, laminography or tomosynthesis, which are very fast algorithm. Latter two methods show outstanding performance in cross-sectional image reconstruction of lead type component, but they are also known to show some fatal limitations to some kinds of components such as BGA, because of shadow effect. Although conventional tomography does not have any shadow effect, the shape of PCB prohibits it from being applied to shape reconstruction of solder joints on PCB. This paper shows that tomography using Iterative Reconstruction Technique(IRT) can be applied to this difficult problem without any limitations. This makes conventional radiographic instrument used for shape reconstruction without shadow effect. This means that the new method makes cost down and shadow-free shape reconstruction. To verify the effectiveness of IRT, we develop three dimensional model of BGA solder ball, make projection model to obtain X-ray projection data. and perform a simulation study of shape reconstruction. To compare the performance of IRT with that of conventional laminography or tomosynthesis, reconstruction data are reorganized and error analysis between the original model are also performed.

• Proceedings of the KSME Conference
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• 2008.11a
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• pp.250-255
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• 2008

This study utilized a high speed lap-shear test to evaluate the mechanical behavior of Sn-37Pb/Cu and Sn-37Pb/Electroless Nickel immersion Gold under bump metallization solder joints under high speed loading and hence the drop reliability. The samples were aged for 120 h at different temperatures ($120^{\circ}C,\;150^{\circ}C,\;170^{\circ}C$) and afterward tested at different displacement rates (0.01 mm/s to 500 mm/s) to examine the effects of aging on the drop life reliability. The combination of the stress-strain graphs captured from the shear tests and identifying a fracture mode dominant in the samples for different strain rates leads us to conclude that the drop reliability of solder joints degrades as the aging temperature increases, possibly due to the role of the IMC layer. This study successfully demonstrates that the analysis based on a high speed lap-shear test could be critically used to evaluate the drop reliability of solder joints.

• Journal of the Microelectronics and Packaging Society
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.55-61
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• 2022

In this study, properties of Pb-free solder joints which were combined using Sn-3.0Ag-0.5Cu (SAC305) Pb-free solder with a mid-temperature type of melting temperature and Sn-57Bi-1Ag Pb-free solder with a low-temperature type of melting temperature were reported. Combined Pb-free solder joints were formed by reflow soldering processes with ball grid array (BGA) packages which have SAC305 solder balls and flame retardant-4 (FR-4) printed circuit boards (PCBs) which printed Sn-57Bi-1Ag solder paste. The reflow soldering processes were performed with two types of temperature profiles and interfacial properties of combined Pb-free solder joints such as interfacial reactions, formations of intermetallic compounds (IMCs), diffusion mechanisms of Bi, and so on were analyzed with the reflow process conditions. In order to compare reliability characteristics of combined Pb-free solder joints, we also conducted thermal shock test and analyzed changes of mechanical properties for joints from a shear test during the thermal shock test.

• Journal of the Microelectronics and Packaging Society
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.17-29
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• 2023

In this paper, a method for evaluating the reliability of solder joints is introduced, as they play a crucial role in packaging technology due to the miniaturization and high-performance requirements of electronic device. Firstly, properties of solder based on various alloy compositions and solder types are described, followed by an analysis of solder joint structures in different packages. Next, the influence of solder alloy composition and microstructure on the thermal and mechanical properties of solder is analyzed, and solder creep behavior is briefly introduced. Subsequently, analytical techniques considering creep models and fatigue models for reliability evaluation are presented, and various ways to improve the reliability of solder joints are discussed. This study is expected to provide valuable information for evaluating and enhancing the reliability of solder joints in the semiconductor packaging technology field.

• Journal of the Microelectronics and Packaging Society
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• v.13 no.1 s.38
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• pp.63-72
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• 2006

Mobile products, such as cellular phones, PDA and notebook, are subjected to many different mechanical loads, which include bending, twisting, impact shock and vibration. In this study, a cyclic bending test of the BGA package was performed to evaluate the fatigue life. Special bending tester, which was suitable for electronic package, was developed using an electromagnetic actuator. A nonlinear finite element model was used to simulate the mechanical bending deformation of solder joint in BGA packages. The fatigue life of lead-free (95.5Sn4.0Ag0.5Cu) solder joints was compared with that of lead-contained (63Sn37Pb). When the applied load to the specimen is small, the lead-free solder has longer fatigue life than lead-contained solder. The fatigue crack is initialized at the exterior solder joints and is propagated into the inner solder joints.

• Electronic Materials Letters
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• v.14 no.6
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• pp.678-688
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• 2018

The repeated-bending properties of Sn-0.7Cu, Sn-0.3Ag-0.7Cu (SAC0307), and Sn-3.0Ag-0.5Cu (SAC305) solders mounted on flexible substrates were studied using highly accelerated stress testing (HAST), followed by repeated-bending testing. In the Sn-0.7Cu joints, the $Cu_6Sn_5$ intermetallic compound (IMC) coarsened as the HAST time increased. For the SAC0307 and SAC305 joints, the $Ag_3Sn$ and $Cu_6Sn_5$ IMCs coarsened mainly along the grain boundary as the HAST time increased. The Sn-0.7Cu solder had a high contact angle, compared to the SAC0307 and SAC305 solders; consequently, the SAC0307 and SAC305 solder joints displayed smoother fillet shapes than the Sn-0.7Cu solder joint. The repeated-bending for the Sn-0.7Cu solder produced the crack initiated from the interface between the Cu lead wire and the solder, and that for the SAC solders indicated the cracks initiated at the surface, but away from the interface between the Cu lead wire and the solder. Furthermore, the oxide layer was thickest for Sn-0.7Cu and thinnest for SAC305, regardless of the HAST time. For the SAC solders, the crack initiation rate increased as the oxide layer thickened and roughened. $Cu_6Sn_5$ precipitated and grew along the grain and subgrain boundaries as the HAST time increased, embrittling the grain boundary at the crack propagation site.

• Journal of the Microelectronics and Packaging Society
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.13-19
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• 2000

Shear strengths of BGA solder joints on Cu pads were studied for Cu-containing Sn (0, 1.5, and 2.5 wt.% Cu) and Sn-40Pb (0 and 0.5wt.% Cu) solders, with emphasis on the roles of the Cu-Sn intermetallic layer thickness and the roughness of the interface between the intermetalic layer and solder. The shear strength test was performed for as-soldered solder joints with various soldering reaction times up to 4 min. The addition of Cu to the pure Sn solder results in an enhanced growth of the intermetallic layer whereas the effect of Cu addition to the Sn-40Pb solder is primarily on the reduction of the roughness of the intermetallic/solder interface. The critical thickness of the intermetallic layer for a maximum shear strength depends on the solder materials, which was measured to be ~ 2.3 $\mu\textrm{m}$ for Sn-Cu solders and ~ 1.2 $\mu\textrm{m}$ for Sn-Pb-Cu solders. The shear strength at the critical intermetallic layer thickness seems to increase as the intermetallic/solder interface becomes rougher. This is in accordance with the observation that the sheared fracture occurred initially within the solder tends to shift towards the intermetallic/solder interface as the intermetallic layer grows above the critical thickness.

• Korean Journal of Metals and Materials
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• v.50 no.1
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• pp.71-77
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• 2012

We studied the effect of heat treatment on the microstructures and mechanical strength of the solder joints in the Light Emitting Diode (LED) packages. The commercial LED packages were mounted on the a flame resistance-4 (FR4) Printed Circuit Board (PCB) in the reflow process, and then the joints were aged at $125^{\circ}C$ for 100, 200, 300, 500 and 1000 hours, respectively. After the heat treatment, we measured the shear strength of the solder joints between the PCB and the LED packages to evaluate their mechanical property. We used Pb-free Sn-3.0Ag-0.5Cu solder to bond between the LED packages and the PCBs using two different surface finishes, Electroless Nickel-Immersion Gold (ENIG) and Electroless Nickel-Electroless Palladium-Immersion Gold (ENEPIG). The microstructure of the solder joints was observed by a scanning electron microscope (SEM). (Cu,Ni)6Sn5 intermetallic compounds (IMCs) formed between the solder and the PCB, and the thickness of the IMCs was increased with increasing aging time. The shear strength for the ENIG finished LED package increased until aging for 300 h and then decreased with increasing aging time. On the other hand, in the case of an ENEPIG finished LED package, the shear strength decreased after aging for 500 h.

• Journal of the Microelectronics and Packaging Society
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.163-169
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• 2019

Sn-Pb solder alloys in electronics rapidly has been replaced to Pb free solder alloys because of various environmental regulations such as restriction of hazardous substances directive (RoHS), European Union waste electrical, waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), registration evaluation authorization and of chemicals (REACH) etc. Because Sn58%Bi (in wt.%) solder alloy has low melting point and higher mechanical properties than that of Sn-Pb solder, it has been studied to manufacture electronic components. However, the reliability of Sn58%Bi solder could be lowered because of the brittleness of Bi element included in the solder alloy. Therefore, we observed the microstructures of Sn58%Bi composite solders with various contents of Sn-decorated multiwalled carbon nanotube (Sn-MWCNT) particles and evaluated bonding strength of the FR-4 components assembled with Sn58%Bi composite solder. Also, microstructures and bonding strengths of the Sn58%Bi composite solder joints were evaluated with the number of reflows from 1 to 7 times, respectively. Bonding strengths and fracture energies of the Sn58%Bi composite solder joints were measured by die shear test. Microstructures and fracture modes were observed with scanning electron microscope (SEM). Microstructures in the Sn58%Bi composite solder joints were finer than that of only Sn58%Bi solder joint. Bonding strength and fracture energy of Sn58%Bi composite solder including 0.1 wt.% of Sn-decorated MWCNT particles increased up to 20.4% and 15.4% at 5 times in reflow, respectively.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.19 no.6
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• pp.337-343
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• 2009

In this study, we optimized Pb-free Sn/Ni plating thickness and conditions were optimized to counteract the environmental regulations, such as RoHS and ELV(End-of Life Vehicles). The $B_{10}$ life verification method was also suggested to have been successful when used with the accelerated life test(ALT) for assessing Pb-free solder joint life of piezoelectric (PZT) ceramic resonator. In order to evaluate the solder joint life, a modified Norris-Landzberg equation and a Coffin-Manson equation were utilized. Test vehicles that were composed of 2520 PZT ceramic resonator on FR-4 PCB with Sn-3.0Ag-0.5Cu for ALT were manufactured as well. Thermal shock test was conducted with 1,500 cycles from $(-40{\pm}2)^{\circ}C$ to $(120{\pm}2)^{\circ}C$, and 30 minutes dwell time at each temperature, respectively. It was discovered that the thermal shock test is a very useful method in introducing the CTE mismatch caused by thermo-mechanical stress at the solder joints. The resonance frequency of test components was measured and observed the microsection views were also observed to confirm the crack generation of the solder joints.