Quality and reliability are a big deal when designing PCB for assembly. Our guest Tony Lentz, Chemist and Field Applications Engineer at FCT Solder will bring us to the PCB manufacturing space while tackling solder beyond basic thermodynamics and composition.

Listen or watch through the end. This is a great opportunity for PCB designers to learn about soldering products that are used for printed circuit board assembly.

Episode Highlights:

Introduction to Tony Lentz, his background, and role as a Chemist and Field Applications Engineer at FCT Solder

Tony talks about how they work with their clients to achieve best quality when manufacturing their PCBs

Diving into the chemistry side of things, Tony tackles about how the blending of different metal alloys, additives, and different inter-metallics to that solder joint composition, the pads, and the components can affect the overall reliability of the PCB

With the automotive industry’s growing electronic demands, thermal testing cycles are expanding aggressively. Recently between negative 40C to 175 C!

Tony briefly explains the different worlds involving PCB manufacturing and assembly: solder company, plating company, components manufacturing, board manufacturing, assembly and the list goes on

What is tombstoning?

Head on pillow on a BGA is another difficult defect to get rid of, Tony explains what can cause this problem

Expert Tip: A rule of thumb for large thermal pads is to cut it down somewhere between 60 and 80% of the total area covered with solder paste and then break that deposit up with some window pane type openings going through it

Are hybrid solder reliable?

The stability of solder alloys can differ based on the different kinds of metals, components and PCB surface finish