Title :
Effect of Solder Joint Degradation on RF Impedance
Author :
Kwon, Daeil ; Azarian, Michael H. ; Pecht, Michael G.
Author_Institution :
Center for Adv. Life Cycle Eng. (CALCE), Maryland Univ., College Park, MD
Abstract :
This study demonstrates the value of RF impedance measurements as an early indicator of physical degradation of solder joints compared to DC resistance measurements. Mechanical fatigue tests have been conducted with an impedance-controlled circuit board on which a surface mount component was soldered. Simultaneous measurements were performed of DC resistance and the time domain reflection coefficient, as a measure of RF impedance, while the solder joints were stressed. The RF impedance was observed to increase in response to cracking of the solder joint while DC resistance remained constant. Failure analysis revealed that the RF impedance increase resulted from a physical crack initiated at the surface of the solder joint, which had propagated only partway across the solder joint.
Keywords :
cracks; electric impedance measurement; failure analysis; fatigue testing; reliability; solders; surface mount technology; time-domain reflectometry; DC resistance measurements; RF impedance measurements; failure analysis; impedance-controlled circuit board; mechanical fatigue tests; solder joint cracking; solder joint degradation effect; surface mount component; time domain reflection coefficient; Circuit testing; Degradation; Electrical resistance measurement; Impedance measurement; Radio frequency; Soldering; Stress measurement; Surface cracks; Surface impedance; Surface resistance;
Conference_Titel :
Signal Propagation on Interconnects, 2008. SPI 2008. 12th IEEE Workshop on
Conference_Location :
Avignon
Print_ISBN :
978-1-4244-2317-0
Electronic_ISBN :
978-1-4244-2318-7
DOI :
10.1109/SPI.2008.4558411
