FEATURES

• Component Packaging
  Design and Modeling of High-Speed, High-Density 3-D CSPs and Memory Modules
  DDR2 pushed memory clock frequencies to 400 MHz and data rates to 800 Mbps. DDR3 further pushes clock frequencies to 800 MHz, while DDR4 is up to 1.6 GHz. New packaging technologies such as die stacking and package-on-package (PoP) are being developed to accommodate the advances.
  By Dr. Frank Y. Yuan and Richard Crisp

• Benchtop Cleaning
  The ‘Big Brush Off’ Revisited
  In rework and repair, if you can’t rinse, you can’t clean. A prescription for cleaning a board after hand-soldering.
  By Mike Jones

• Cover Story
  Impact of Soldering Atmosphere on Solder Joint Formation
  This collaborative effort between Flextronics and Vitronics Soltec investigated different techniques that can significantly reduce nitrogen consumption without affecting final assembly quality. Alternative nitrogen supply methods were studied, such as applying nitrogen only on the reflow areas in combination with different oxygen ppm levels during reflow process and their impact on the secondary wave soldering process of copper OSP PCBs.
  By Ursula Marquez de Tino, Dr. Denis Barbini and Wesley Enroth

• Packaging Developments
  Beyond Moore’s Law
  Evolving 3-D system-in-packaging architectures require advanced co-design tools linked with modeling and simulation capability to facilitate effective collaboration between system, device and packaging engineers, and new materials that meet environmental requirements. But as an integrator of components and technologies from different areas, SiP is positioned to become a primary architecture.
  By Dr. W.R. Bottoms

• Protecting Parts
  ESD Control For Class 0 ESDS Devices
  A summary of problems associated with protecting state-of-the-art devices with standard ESD controls, and specific controls necessary for reliable protection for devices sensitive between 20 and 100V.
  By Roger Peirce

• Program Management
  Growing Your Brand
  For nearly three decades, Sue Mucha has led EMS marketing teams at companies large and small, public and private. Now the Circuits Assembly columnist has written about her experiences prepping EMS teams on growth strategies in a new book.
  By Mike Buetow

• ESD Standards
  This Year’s Model
  ESD qualification methods for ICs have a history requiring performance to human-body-model levels of 2kV, and in some cases 200V for machine model levels. New investigations on target levels establish more realistic levels for HBM and MM.
  By Dr. Charvaka Duvvury and Dr. Harald Gossner

FIRST PERSON

• Caveat Lector
  Broken chains.
  Mike Buetow

• Talking Heads
  KPS’s Pierre de Villemejane.
  Mike Buetow

TECH TALK

• Screen Printing
  Equipment assessment methods.
  Dr. Rita Mohanty

• Better Manufacturing
  Big, bad black pad.
  Phil Zarrow

• Tech Tips
  Pulled apart.
  American Competitiveness Institute

• Reflow Soldering
  ‘Weighing’ thermal profiling.
  Dr. Denis Barbini

• Process Doctor
  Finding chemistry in cleaning.
  Dr. Mike Bixenman

• Pb-Free Lessons Learned
  Paging Ben Franklin.
  Chrys Shea

• Getting Lean
  Don’t design in cost.
  Chris Munroe

• Equipment Advances
  Siemens’ X4i placement machine.

• Technical Abstracts

DEPARTMENTS

Industry News
Market Watch
Apex Product Preview
Ad Index
Assembly Insider

On the cover: Flux chemistry can dramatically affect solder joint results. (Photo by Mariano Ruiz)