Cover Story
Cleaning Up after Pb-Free
Lacking field data for no-clean Pb-free solders and confidence in accelerated aging tests? An expected increase in contaminants means effective cleaning is the only way to guarantee an assembly won't fail due to residues.
Leigh Jansen

Process Management
Concurrent Manufacturing in an EMS Environment
The changes and precautions to take down the line during implementation of Pb-free manufacturing. This review covers printing, placement, soldering, inspection, materials management, compatibility and marking.
Amey Teredesai and Tony Batalha

Soldering Materials
Pb-Free Solder Assembly for Mixed-Technology Boards
While assemblers push for a single alloy throughout all soldering processes to avoid cross-contamination, tests show no joint degradation related to the mixing of SN100C and SAC alloys.
Karl Seelig

Wire Bonding
Increasing Process Reliability in Fine-Pitch Wire Bonding
A two-year study involving millions of bonds on LQFPs and BGAs identifies close ties between the performance of the wire bonder capillary and subsequent failures.
Yair Alcobi

Caveat Lector
A platform for all electronics.
Mike Buetow

Talking Heads
RVSI's Kevin Maddy.
Mike Buetow

Focus on Business
Data mining in EMS.
Susan Mucha

Global Sourcing
Qualification methods for CSPs.
Robin Norvell

On the Forefront
R&D's new model.
E. Jan Vardaman

Screen Printing
Using DPMO to rate equipment performance.
Clive Ashmore

Better Manufacturing
HALT and HASS testing.
Peter Grundy

Soldering Tips
The new GEIA Pb-free guide.
American Competitiveness Institute

Wave Soldering
Guarding your pot.
Gerjan Diepstraten

Test and Inspection
Pin-in-hole reflow inspection.
Dr. David Bernard and Bob Willis

Countdown to Pb-Free
Recommendations for thermally challenging products.
Joe Smetana and Thilo Sack

ESD Basics
Eliminating ESD in the air.
David E. Swenson

Process Doctor
Resolving sulfate contamination.
Terry Munson

Equipment Advances
ECT's new board tester.

Technical Abstracts

Materials Declaration
Full Disclosure
What are your parts made out of? It's not so easy to know.
Michael Kirschner

Pb-Free Printing Parameters
Understanding Pb-Free Stencil Requirements
This study of what happens when the process window is intentionally violated finds engineers should worry more about the effects of stencil geometries than a centered Pb-free print process.
Clive Ashmore

Technology Innovations
Integrating AOI and Selective Soldering
A breakthrough machine for PTH mass soldering combines AOI and selective soldering in a single inline unit. How it works, and the business case behind it.
Mark Cannon, Bob Klenke and Phil Zarrow

EMS RoHS Models
Outsourcing RoHS-Compliant Production at a Distance
How Beyonics tackled the Pb-free transition, and auditing advice for overseas customers.
Eric Liew, Fadzol Zaman and Sivakumar Thanupillai

Supply Chain Solutions
The Supply Excellence Project at Ericsson and Solectron
Blending Lean and Agile concepts cut lead times by 75% on a complex, custom telecom product.
Ylva Andersson, Jan Melin, Rolf Broström, Lindsay Ballantyne, Dave Cooper and Lennart Ivarsson

Procurement
The Future of PCB Procurement
The battle for supply-chain ownership pits distributors vs. EMS firms.
Mike Buetow

Solder Joint Reliability
Crack Growth Rate Measurement and Analysis for WLCSP SnAgCu Solder Joints
Using FEM, cracking is correlated with average inelastic strain and strain energy density.
Paresh Limaye, Bart Vandevelde, Dirk Vandepitte and Bert Verlinden

Pb-Free Wave Soldering
Dynamics in Pb-Free Wave Soldering
A five-phase study of fluxes and convection preheating related to three Pb-free alloys revealed a few unexpected twists.
R.A. Szymanowski, D. Casati, E. Saglia, P. Lotosky, K. Howell and G. Hueste

Caveat Lector
Cookson gets reworked.
Mike Buetow

Talking Heads
Valor's Chuck Feingold and David Bengal.
Mike Buetow

Focus on Business
Sustaining profitability through services.
Dr. Jonathon Linton

Global Sourcing
How to kill business by not even trying.
Greg Papandrew

On the Forefront
The "magic mix."
Dr. Ken Gilleo

Screen Printing
Z-axis support options.
Joe Belmonte

Better Manufacturing
When profiling is a good thing.
Phil Zarrow

Soldering Tips
A primer on x-ray fluorescence.
American Competitiveness Institute

Wave Soldering
Mitigating common Pb-free defects.
Gerjan Diepstraten

Countdown to Pb-Free
Don't bank on an RoHS extension.
Steven Andrews

Process Doctor
Are your cleaning processes in control?
Terry Munson

Equipment Advances
Juki's selective soldering series.

Technical Abstracts

Flex Assembly
Installing Flash LEDs on Flex
Recommendations on soldering and bending processes when components are mounted on a flex circuit.
Shereen Lim

Pb-Free Soldering Profiles
Processes and Their Parameters
Although many important aspects required to establish the “ultimate” profile for wave or reflow soldering have not yet been investigated, several can be used as a starting point.
Markus Walter

Cover Story
Use of Closed-Loop Process Controls in Dispensing
Tests show that a two-component epoxy adhesive will change in viscosity over time and cause a direct change in the amount being deposited. Yet a simple weight measurement can be used to calibrate a dispensing process.
James Klocke

Encapsulant Materials
Low Pressure Molding: A Primer
Low pressure molding reduces the process steps required by conventional potting techniques and is now in use for complete encapsulation of PCBs.
Frank Ongkiehong and Steven Dufresne

Productronica Recap
Still the King of Shows
Three standout products made royal debuts at the world’s largest electronics equipment fair.
Mike Buetow

Pb-Free Rework
Hand Solder Rework of Pb-Free PTH and SMT Packages
A study of over 1300 Pb-free components proves Pb-free hand solder rework can be performed reliably. The top variable: Operator experience.
Alan Donaldson

Caveat Lector
A manager worth remembering.
Mike Buetow

Talking Heads
Motorola’s Aroon Tungare.
Mike Buetow

Focus on Business
Locating EMS operations.
Susan Mucha

Global Sourcing
Evaluating a Pb-free line.
Guy Martindale and H.R. Chai

On the Forefront
From tragedy comes opportunity.
E. Jan Vardaman

Screen Printing
Chip attachment and encapsulation.
Clive Ashmore

Soldering Tips
Nondestructive BGA inspection.
American Competitiveness Institute

Wave Soldering
Warm up to ‘frosty’ joints.
Gerjan Diepstraten

Test and Inspection
Adjustments for Pb-free parts.
Jens Kokott

Countdown to Pb-Free
Tin whisker management, part 2.
Joe Smetana and Ron Gedney

Process Doctor
Debunking white residues.
Terry Munson

Software Advances
Mentor’s Expedition Enterprise.

Technical Abstracts