Transcript Document
Improving Solder Paste Reflow Mike Fenner Technical Manager Indium Europe March 2010 Slide 1 Today • Heat transfer and equipment • How to profile, variables to consider • Understanding and designing the “Best profile” • Understanding what the profile does Slide 2 Heat transfer Revision Physics: Transferring thermal energy • Conduction • Radiation • Convection Slide 3 Reflow Equipment • Conduction – Hot plate/travelling hot plate – Thick film guys – Hot bar – Specific components – Soldering iron – Repair, odd form • Induction - Another industry another day Slide 4 Reflow Equipment Leaves Convection • Vapour Phase Reflow [Condensation Soldering] • Forced Air convection Slide 5 Reflow Equipment Vapour Phase Reflow • Single chamber process • Usually batch, can be conveyorised – Boil Inert Liquid – Heated Vapour Condenses on Product (All Surfaces) – Equilibrium process, heat transfer stops at BP of liquid – Not mass, shape or color sensitive – Almost No DT at reflow Slide 6 Vapor Phase Reflow Oven (Batch Style) 1980s Elegant and simple concept Temperature rise rate/ RAMP rate??? Anaerobic? 21st C Cost?? Mass Production??? Generally high mix/ low volume/prototyping Slide 7 Reflow Equipment Convection/Forced convection • Multi chamber (zone) • Usually always conveyorised – – – – Air/nitrogen is heated and circulated Provides Even Heat Moderate Price Not usually, but can be, in equilibrium • The dominant technology Slide 8 Convection Reflow Ovens: Dominate the Industry Courtesy: Electrovert Slide 9 Before we go any further • There is no universal best profile • Profile is not determined by the paste • Profile is not determined by the PCBA • Profile is not determined by the reflow oven • It’s a combination – and that combination is unique to you • Mostly its determined by the efficiency of the oven and the workload. Paste is secondary – Any Recommended Profile is therefore just a strong suggestion Slide 10 Classic Profiling concept Slide 11 Z1 Z2 Z3 Z4 Z5 Z6 Z1 Z2 Z3 Z4 Z5 Z6 Z7 Z7 CoolingCooling Capturing a temperature profile • Thermocouples are attached to components on the PCBa • The temperature of the components is measured as the PCBa passes through the oven and is soldered. T Peak Temp Liquidus Temp Soak Exit Temp Soak Entry Temp Heating Rates °c/s • Soak time t Time Above Liquidus Slide 12 RAMP SOAK Reflow COOL There are 2 basic methods…. Fishing wire method • Uses oven/external measurement system and long thermocouples • Practical only on small ovens • Measurements tend to be more variable • Assembly is easily snagged and damaged on moving conveyor parts Slide 13 So in practice - how do you determine best profile? • Use a data logger or Profiler • Use predictive software with SPC • What is the ‘best profile’? Slide 14 Thermal Profilers Slide 15 Process Variables • • • • • • Slide 16 Oven type and settings Solder paste and flux Board finish Components – technology PCB substrate and layout Throughput The Lead Free Challenge • Component Integrity Max package temperatures currently 235-240C Excess heating has unknown effect on device MTBF Widespread use of ‘delicate’ package types. • Reduced process window Lead free pastes have liquidus temp 30-40C higher than Sn/Pb Slide 17 Sn/Pb process window • Illustration for standard Sn63/Pb37 solder paste (TLiq = 183C) • Solder paste spec specifies min peak of 205 C for good wetting • Component maximum is 235C Peak Temp Deg C TOO HOT 235 OK 30C 205 TOO COLD WE HAVE A 30C PROCESS WINDOW TO WORK WITH ! Slide 18 SAC process window • Illustration for lead free SnAgCu solder paste ( Tliq = 217C) • Solder paste spec specifies min peak of 227 C for good wetting • Max Peak ideally is 257C but component max is still 235C Peak Temp Deg C TOO HOT 235 OK 8C 227 TOO COLD WE NOW HAVE AN 8C PROCESS WINDOW TO WORK WITH ! Slide 19 Reduced process window • Oven needs to maintain small delta T across the board. • Profiles need to be developed for each board type • Periodic profiling required to monitor and maintain process Slide 20 Pass through profiling system method - AKA Data Logger • Follows the PCBa through the reflow oven • Data logger must be protected from the heat • Can be used on large or small ovens • Generally more accurate and repeatable • Must be small to pass through restricted oven tunnels • Should be narrow to allow profiling of small PCB’s Slide 21 Methods of thermocouple attachment Method Advantage Disadvantage Kapton Tape quick/non destructive Non permanent / unreliable, errors Adhesive metal foil quick/non destructive Non permanent / unreliable, errors High temperature adhesive robust/quick cure Rel. poor thermal conductivity, errors HMP solder (290-305DegC) robust/good conductivity Dedicated test PCBa req’d Slide 22 Where to attach TC’s ? • Aim is to heat the board uniformly • Components vary in size, mass, texture and colour. • PCB’s vary is size, shape, mass, component densities • Need to identify extremes of the profile envelope. Slide 23 Some pointers … • High mass/bigger components will heat up slowest • Low mass/smaller components will heat up fastest • Power components with integral heat-sinks • Components connected to large copper ground planes • Indirectly heated components ( BGA ) • Components nearer board edges • Components nearer the centre / densely populated • Components shadowed by others Slide 24 Profiling do’s and don'ts • DO make the TC leads long enough so that the profiler follows at least 1 zone behind the PCB. • DON’T pass the profiler through the oven first, always behind the PCBa. • DO profile an example of the actual board being processed. • DON’T profile the test board again before it has returned to ambient temperature. • DO profile a populated board. Slide 25 Profile Prediction • Allows the effect of heater and belt-speed set-point changes to be predicted • Saves time and money by eliminating the need to perform unnecessary profile runs for set-up and fine tuning • Reduces machine downtime by allowing process set-up to be completed offline. • Eases process set-up and change over to Lead Free paste • Unique graphical approach intuitively provides guidance to the user to optimise the process • Quickly allows the user to evaluate the effect of paste changes on the process. Slide 26 Optimising Reflow Conventional / New Profiles Common Defects Ideal Profile Design Slide 27 Do a proper DoE Proprietary/Predictive Programs with SPC Ours is ReflowCoach™ Slide 28 Or use SPC tools which come with good profilers • Instantly produces run charts for each process parameter • Also calculates XBar,σ,Cp and Cpk • Source data selected from profile database Slide 29 Potential Reflow Problems 250 3. 4. 5. Splatter, thermal shock Insufficient solvent evaporation 1 Oxidation, too much flux 2 activation Insufficient flux activity TAL 200 Temperature (oC) 1. 2. 150 4 6 100 0 b) Slide 30 3 50 a) 6. 5 Long/Hot: IM too thick, component damage Short/Cool: trapping of flux, voids Too fast: thermal shock Too slow: large grains=> weak joint 0 50 100 150 200 Time (seconds) 250 300 350 400 Conventional Profile Design IR sensitive to variation in parts feature. Soak zone helped to reduce temperature gradient Temperature (°C) 250 200 Cold spot Hot spot MP 150 100 50 0 0 Slide 31 100 200 300 Time (seconds) 400 500 Optimized reflow profile via defect mechanisms consideration Slow ramp-up to 195°C, gradual raise to 200°C, spike to 230 °C, rapid cool down. Temperature (°C) 250 200 150 Profile MP 100 50 0 0 Slide 32 100 200 300 Time (seconds) 400 500 Defect Mechanisms Analysis • Tombstoning / Skewing – uneven wetting at both ends of chip Slide 33 Defect Mechanisms Analysis - II • Wicking / Opens – leads hotter than PCB • slow ramp up rate to allow the board and components reaching temperature equilibrium before solder melts; more bottom side heating Slide 34 Defect Mechanisms Analysis - III • Solder balling – spattering (slow ramp up rate to dry out paste solvents or moisture gradually) – excessive oxidation (minimize heat input prior to reflow (slow ramp up rate, no plateau at soaking zone) to reduce oxidation) Slide 35 Defect Mechanisms Analysis - IV • Hot slump / Bridging – viscosity drops with increasing temperature • slow ramp up rate to dry out paste solvent gradually before viscosity decreases too much Slide 36 Defect Mechanisms Analysis - V • Solder beading – Slumping (Viscosity drops w/ increasing temperature) – Spattering (Rapid outgassing under low standoff components) Slide 37 Beading is more often a result of poor aperture design Defect Mechanism - VI • Poor wetting – excessive oxidation(minimize heat input prior to reflow (minimize soaking zone, or use linear ramp-up from ambient to solder melting temperature) to reduce oxidation) Slide 38 Defect Mechanisms Analysis - VII • Voiding – excessive oxidation (minimize heat input prior to reflow (minimize soaking zone, or use linear rampup from ambient to solder melting temperature) to reduce oxidation) – flux remnant too high in viscosity (cooler reflow profile to allow more solvents in flux remnant) Slide 39 Defect Mechanisms Analysis - VIII • • • • Charring - dark flux residue Leaching - grainy solder joint appearance Dewetting - uneven pad wetting Excessive Intermetallics - poor joint reliability – overheat (lower temperature, shorter time above Liquidus) Slide 40 Voiding changes things Slide 41 Summary • Temperature profiling forms a key part of lead free processing. • Used in both process setup and ongoing process control • Modern profiling equipment has extensive tools to help setup and maintain your lead free process. Slide 42 Further reading: In depth explanation of what we’ve just seen Slide 43 Finally Component Placement 15% Reflow 15% Incoming Components 6% Optimizing printing and reflow processes can alleviate almost 80% of defects. Slide 44 Solder Paste Screen Printer 64% That’s it • Thank you for your attention • Questions Acknowledgements and thanks to Solderstar for their assistance in preparation of this presentation www.solderstar.co.uk Slide 45