Effect of alloy particle size and stencil aperture shape on solder printing quality
Microelectronics International
ISSN: 1356-5362
Article publication date: 5 May 2022
Issue publication date: 17 May 2022
Abstract
Purpose
Reflow solder joint quality is significantly affected by the ability of the solder to perfectly fill pad space and retain good solder joint shape. This study aims to investigate solder joint quality by quantitatively analyzing the stencil printing-deposited solder volume, solder height and solder coverage area.
Design/methodology/approach
The dispensability of different solder paste types on printed circuit board (PCB) pads using different stencil aperture shapes was evaluated. Lead-free Type 4 (20–38 µm particle size) and Type 5 (15–25 µm particle size) solder pastes were used to create solder joints according to standard reflow soldering.
Findings
The results show that the stencil aperture shape greatly affects the solder joint quality as compared with the type of solder paste. These investigations allow the development of new strategies for solving solder paste stencil printing issues and evaluating the quality of solder joints.
Originality/value
The reflow soldering process requires the appropriate selection of the stencil aperture shape according to the PCB and the solder paste according to the particle-size distribution of the solder alloy powder. However, there are scarce studies on the effects of stencil aperture shape and the solder alloy particle size on the solder paste space-filling ability.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to acknowledge the financial support provided by Western Digital via SanDisk Storage Malaysia Sdn. Bhd through a research grant (RR-2020-004) and collaboration with the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. The author would like to thank the Western Digital Batu Kawan core investigation team for their assistance in gathering relevant data and results for this article. Special thanks to the Institute of Microengineering and Nanoelectronics (IMEN), UKM, for guiding the writing of this paper.
Citation
Mohamed Sunar, M.S., Abu Bakar, M., Jalar, A., Ramli, M.R. and Che Ani, F. (2022), "Effect of alloy particle size and stencil aperture shape on solder printing quality", Microelectronics International, Vol. 39 No. 2, pp. 81-90. https://doi.org/10.1108/MI-12-2021-0121
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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