Decapsulation of Silicone-Epoxy Copolymer Packages

For the purpose of failure analysis plastic packages need to be decapsulated by chemical means. A variety of chemically dissimilar materials in the package present a difficulty in discovering a decapsulation medium that will attack only the plastic leaving the assembly intact. The specific problems encountered in decapsulation of silicone epoxy copolymer packages with silver plated lead frames are stated. A scientific approach to these problems and their resolution is outlined.