Low Temperature Solder Alloys Compared With SAC305 A lead free assembly is normally soldered with an alloy of tin, silver, and copper that melts at about two hundred and seventeen degrees Celsius, which forces a peak reflow temperature above two hundred and forty. That temperature is close to the limit…
PID Temperature Controller Circuit Design A temperature controller compares a measurement with a set point and adjusts the power delivered to a heater. The electronics are straightforward; the difficulty is that heat moves slowly, and a loop that is tuned for a fast response will oscillate in a way that…
Humidity, Condensation and Moisture Protection of Assemblies Moisture reaches an assembly in two ways: as vapour that condenses on a cold surface, and as liquid that enters through a vent or a seal. Both produce the same result, and the design decides which one happens. How Condensation Forms Air holds…
Solder Paste Rheology and the Print Window Paste is a thixotropic fluid: it flows when it is sheared and it recovers when the shear stops. The print window is the range of conditions over which that behaviour gives a good deposit. What Thixotropy Means Here When the squeegee rolls the…
Rework Heating Methods and Local Thermal Stress Rework is a localised reflow performed on an assembly that is already populated. The heat has to reach one joint without moving the joints beside it, and the methods differ mainly in how well they do that. The Problem With Local Heat Heat…
Avalanche Photodiode Bias Design An avalanche photodiode multiplies the photocurrent internally by operating close to its breakdown voltage, which gives it a sensitivity that a plain photodiode cannot match. The multiplication factor changes steeply with the bias, so the supply and its stability are the whole design. How the Multiplication…
PCB Labeling And Traceability Requirements A finished board carries more than copper and solder mask. It carries a date code, a part number, a revision, a flammability marking, and increasingly a two dimensional code that links it to a production record. That information is what makes a board traceable, and…
PCB Storage, Shelf Life and Moisture Control A printed board is a chemical system as well as an electrical one. The copper is protected by a finish that reacts slowly with the air, the laminate absorbs moisture from the atmosphere, and the solder mask and the markings have their own…
Solder Alloy Choice and Thermal Fatigue Life A solder joint that is cycled between two temperatures will eventually crack. The mechanism is not a mystery: the board and the component expand by different amounts, the joint is the only thing connecting them, and the alloy is asked to absorb the…
Poka Yoke: Error Proofing and Self-Inspection on the Assembly Line Inspection after the fact is expensive and it is unreliable. The alternative is to make the error impossible or immediately visible at the station where it happens. Why Self-Inspection Is Weak on Its Own An operator who inspects their own…












