Pin in Paste Process Guide Pin in paste, also called through hole reflow, prints solder paste into the plated holes and onto the pads of a through hole component and then reflows it in the same pass as the surface mount parts. The process removes a second soldering step, and…

Reflow Oven Zone Balancing for Uniform Board Heating A reflow oven is described by its zones, and each zone holds a temperature. What the board experiences is not those setpoints but the result of the heat they deliver, the speed at which the board passes through them and the mass…

Solder Joint Void Acceptance Criteria Explained A void is a gap left inside a solder joint where flux volatiles or entrapped air prevented the metal from filling the volume. Voids are present in almost every joint to some degree, so the question is never whether they exist but whether the…

Press Fit Connector Design and Assembly A press fit connector is held in the board by the elastic deformation of a compliant pin in a plated hole. There is no solder, so the joint depends entirely on the mechanical interference between the pin and the barrel, and the reliability of…

Solder Ball Defect Analysis On Assembled Boards A solder ball is a small sphere of solder that has separated from the joint and remains on the board surface, usually beside a pad or trapped under a component. Balls range from harmless specks to a real risk of a short between…

Impedance Coupon: Preparation, Placement and Process Control A controlled impedance board is only as good as the evidence that it meets the requirement. That evidence is normally a coupon built on the same panel with the same stackup, carrying traces whose geometry is known, so that a measurement can be…

PCB Soldermask Improvement: What Matters on the Production Line Electronics manufacturing has become a discipline of small details. Solder paste volumes, placement accuracy, temperature profiles and inspection limits all add up to the final result. This guide looks at PCB soldermask improvement from the perspective of a PCBA factory floor,…

PCB Soldermask Traceability: From Prototype to Volume Production Electronics manufacturing has become a discipline of small details. Solder paste volumes, placement accuracy, temperature profiles and inspection limits all add up to the final result. This guide looks at PCB soldermask traceability from the perspective of a PCBA factory floor, covering…

PCB Soldermask Environment: Key Process and Quality Checks Electronics manufacturing has become a discipline of small details. Solder paste volumes, placement accuracy, temperature profiles and inspection limits all add up to the final result. This guide looks at PCB soldermask environment from the perspective of a PCBA factory floor, covering…

PCB Copper Plating Standards: Practical Process Controls Electronics manufacturing has become a discipline of small details. Solder paste volumes, placement accuracy, temperature profiles and inspection limits all add up to the final result. This guide looks at PCB copper plating standards from the perspective of a PCBA factory floor, covering…