-
- News
- Books
Featured Books
- pcb007 Magazine
Latest Issues
Current IssueFinding Ultra
New demands on PCB fabrication, namely advanced packaging, ultra high density interconnect (UHDI), and new specialty materials, are converging, changing the landscape of our business. Is it time to start paying close attention to this convergence?
Developing a Strategy
A solid strategy is a critical part of success. This month, we asked some of the top industry leaders and business strategy “gurus” to share their thoughts on developing strategies.
Winning With TQM
In this issue, we explore how TQM has entered the DNA of continuous improvement disciplines, and the role leadership transformation plays in this. If you've ever competed against a TQM company, you understand their winning advantage.
- Articles
- Columns
Search Console
- Links
- Events
||| MENU - pcb007 Magazine
Aluminum Base Circuit Technology: Structures and Manufacturing Methods
October 21, 2014 | Joe Fjelstad, Verdant ElectronicsEstimated reading time: 1 minute
Abstract
Aluminum is an attractive material for use in the manufacturing of electronic assemblies owing to its low cost, good thermal properties, dimensional stability, environmental friendliness, and ubiquity. Unfortunately, due to its innate thermal spreading ability, it is not easily used when solder is required to make interconnections to components. This article describes ways to manufacture electronic assemblies using aluminum as a base and eschewing the use of solder.
Introduction
RoHS restrictions on the materials used in electronics manufacture have imparted significant challenges on the electronics industry since their introduction in 2006. The greatest impacts have been felt by the mandated elimination of lead from electronic solder, followed by the demand for the elimination of haloids from flame retardants used in traditional PCB laminates. Since 2006, the electronics industry has been beset with a host of new challenges in its effort to comply. Failure mechanisms, both new and old, have surfaced which demand solution and the industry suppliers and manufacturing technologists have worked diligently to remedy those vexing faults through the development of a wide range of new materials and equipment for both board manufacture and assembly, along with modifications to the processes used in the manufacture and assembly of printed circuit boards.
Most of the problems which have confronted the electronics manufacturing industry have related to the solder assembly process. Lead-free solders were advertised early on as a drop-in replacement for traditional tin lead solders; however, field experience proved it not to be the case. The tin-rich alloys, along with the higher temperatures required for assembly, cause the industry to scramble for solutions to such problems as champagne voids, poorer wetting, brittle solder joints, copper dissolution, tin whiskers, head-in-pillow, greater vulnerability to damage caused by explosive outgassing of absorb moisture in packages among others including cleaning of baked on fluxes following the high temperature assembly process. Lead-free solder also had spillover effects on the PCB laminate material itself as manufacturers experienced delamination and degradation of the resins used in traditional circuit construction. One more recently encountered problem is a phenomenon referred to as pad cratering, wherein resin beneath the copper land to which a component is attached is actually torn loose from the surrounding resin breaking through the copper and causing an open.
Read the full article here.
Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in the September 2014 issue of The PCB Magazine.
Suggested Items
Nihon Superior’s Mr. Keith Sweatman to Present at the 2023 SMTA International Technical Conference
09/27/2023 | Nihon Superior Co. Ltd.Nihon Superior Co. Ltd. is pleased to announce that Keith Sweatman, the company's Senior Technical Advisor, will deliver a presentation titled "A Path to Ductile Low-Temperature Solders for Mass Production of Electronic Assemblies" at the upcoming SMTA International conference and exposition.
Kyocera International Orders Hentec Industries/RPS Automation Odyssey Component Lead Tinning System
09/27/2023 | Hentec Industries/RPS AutomationHentec Industries/RPS Automation, a leading manufacturer of selective soldering, lead tinning and solderability test equipment, is pleased to announce that Kyocera International has finalized the purchase of a Hentec/RPS Odyssey 1325 robotic hot solder dip component lead tinning machine.
Conecsus Metals Mexico to Exhibit Waste Recycling Solutions at SMTA Guadalajara Expo & Tech Forum
09/26/2023 | Conecsus Metals MéxicoConecsus Metals México, an innovative environmental technology and recycling company, will exhibit at the SMTA Foro Tecnico & Expo, Guadalajara, Jalisco, México, on Wednesday, October 25, 2023, beginning at 11:00 a.m.
Thermaltronics to Showcase Cutting-Edge Soldering Solutions at SMTA Guadalajara Expo & Tech Forum
09/21/2023 | Thermaltronics USA, Inc.Thermaltronics USA, Inc., a globally acclaimed manufacturer of Precision Soldering Robots and innovative Curie point soldering systems, is excited to announce its participation in the highly anticipated SMTA Guadalajara Expo & Tech Forum, scheduled to take place from October 25-26, 2023.
ULT to Introduce New Soldering Fume Extractor at productronica
09/20/2023 | ULT AGAt this year's productronica, the world's leading trade show for electronics manufacturing, ULT will present a brand new extraction solution for solder fumes and vapor.