With the RoHS directive in place, the demand for advice and solutions is increasing dramatically. To give the electronics industry answers to the challenges of implementing lead-free processes, IPC and JEDEC are holding an International Lead-Free Conference, December 3–5, 2007 in Austin, TX.

Location and Hotel Accommodations

Both the educational courses and technical conference will take place at The Driskill Hotel, 604 Brazos Street, Austin, TX 78701. To reserve your room, contact the hotel directly at +1-800-252-9367 and ask for the IPC/JEDEC conference rate of $165 single/double per night. Rate is subject to change after November 12, 2007.

Registration Information

Please register by November 19, 2007, to secure your seat at this event. Complete the registration form and fax or mail it to IPC. The technical conference and tabletop displays will be held on December 4, 2007. For more information, or if the registration deadline has passed, contact an IPC registration representative at +1-847-597-2861 or send an e-mail to registration@ipc.org.

Cancellation Policy: Cancellations received before November 30, 2007 will be refunded in full. Refunds will not be issued after the start of the program. Individuals failing to cancel will be billed for the registration fee. If the events are cancelled, participants will receive a full refund. If you are unable to attend, you may send a co-worker in your place.

This advanced course is intended to provide the experienced participant with a thorough, yet practical, overview of lead-free surface mount technology manufacturing. High manufacturing yield can best be attained by understanding and successfully implementing and optimizing the appropriate process considerations. This workshop will give the participant a true comprehension of the SMT assembly processes and associated materials. Optimization of the lead-free SMT assembly process will be covered step by step, including screen/stencil printing, component placement, reflow and inspection as well as the various aspects of solder paste, design considerations, inspection and rework. Failure analysis, reliability and six-sigma principles will also be discussed. Lead-free manufacturing case studies will be included. Most important, particular attention will be paid to the sources of problems that occur within the assembly process.

Topics to be Covered

• Lead free and RoHS
• Design for manufacturability (DFM) and design for excellence (DFX)
• PCB and materials
• Component considerations
• Solder paste printing and deposition
• Component placement
• Wave and selective soldering
• Reflow soldering
• Rework
• Inspection
• Failure analysis for SMT manufacturing
• Reliability and six-sigma

Who Will Benefit

This course is intended for manufacturing, process, design, test and quality engineering personnel as well as management who are experienced in SMT assembly and want to further their expertise in implementing and troubleshooting the processes, equipment and materials involved in modern electronic assembly technology.

About the Instructors

Phil Zarrow is president and co-founder of ITM, Incorporated. He has been involved with hybrid and PCB assembly for more than 26 years, has chaired and instructed at numerous seminars and conferences and has been involved with setup and troubleshooting through-hole and SMT processes throughout the world.

The topic of whether or not lead free is reliable enough for harsh environment electronics will be rationalized by addressing 20 key questions. Based on the sustained development effort, testing data and manifold evaluations, this workshop dissects what it takes to perform in a harsh environment and the rationale behind it. The question on whether a life-prediction model can assure reliability will be discussed. A relative reliability ranking among viable systems, as well as the scientific, engineering and manufacturing reasons behind the ranking will be outlined.

Topics to be Covered

• Underlying technical issues of PTH/PTV failures and the importance of circuit board design, material choices and processing
• The impact on PTH/PTV quality and reliability of the drilling, desmearing and plating processes
• PTH/PTV material interactions and load drivers from processing steps, assembly, screening procedures and use environments; as well as the design parameters, especially of small-diameter/high-aspect-ratio plated-through vias (PTVs)
• Use of a state-of-the-art, but practical, reliability estimation model based on an accelerated testing database from the IPC Round Robins, Bell Labs and others
• Information about the IPC Round Robins on the reliability of small-diameter high-aspect-ratio PTVs and on inner-layer separation (post separation)
• Execution of a successful “Design for Reliability” to assure the quality and reliability of the PTH/via connections in your electronic system

Who Will Benefit

The course is recommended for anybody concerned with the reliability of electronic assemblies and involved in any aspect of the design, assembly and application of PCBs for high-density electronic packaging.

About the Instructor

Werner Engelmaier has over 42 years experience in electronic packaging and interconnection technology and is the president of Engelmaier Associates, L.C., a firm providing consulting services on reliability, manufacturing and processing aspects of electronic packaging and interconnection technology. He is the author of more than 170 technical publications and has been recognized for his work and industry leadership with numerous awards.

The topic of whether or not lead free is reliable enough for harsh environment electronics will be rationalized by addressing 20 key questions. Based on the sustained development effort, testing data and manifold evaluations, this workshop dissects what it takes to perform in a harsh environment and the rationale behind it. The question on whether a life-prediction model can assure reliability will be discussed. A relative reliability ranking among viable systems, as well as the scientific, engineering and manufacturing reasons behind the ranking will be outlined.

Topics to be Covered

• What does it take to perform in harsh environment?
• What are the most hazardous elements to electronics performance and reliability?
• What constitutes reliability—philosophy, principle, practice, cost factor?
• Can SnPb be used as the benchmark of reliability?
• What are the established failure mechanisms of SnPb solder joints - fatigue-creep vs. brittle fracture vs. other failure processes?
• Why must reliability be correlated to quality and manufacturability?
• In reliability, what are the key distinctions and commonalties between lead free and SnPb?
• How should one assess the solder joint reliability and the assembly’s integrity?
• Can a life-prediction model assure reliability, and why not?
• What differentiates lead-free solder joint failure and SnPb?
• What is the most under-utilized characteristic in assessing solder joint reliability?
• What is the beauty of stress vs. strain relationship vs. harsh environment performance?
• What are scientific solder joint strengthening mechanisms vs. test results?
• Why is SAC expected to deliver inferior performance to SnPb under certain conditions?
• Under what conditions is SAC likely fail earlier than SnPb?
• Why is some lead free less robust than SnPb (parameters and results)?
• Why can some lead free be more robust than SnPb (parameters and results)?
• How can solder joint reliability be maximized?
• How can PCB assembly integrity be assured?
• What leads to the ranking of robustness among viable lead-free systems in harsh environments?

Who Will Benefit

The course provides a higher level of working knowledge to all who are involved with or interested in the reliability of lead-free packaging and assembling. This course is also designed for those who desire the broad-based information, as well as the reasons behind the performance and the test data vs. performance.

About the Speaker

A principal of H. Technologies Group, Dr. Jennie S. Hwang has more than 25 years of SMT manufacturing, 16 years of lead-free R&D and production implementation experience. She holds degrees in materials science and engineering, chemistry and liquid crystal science, and has received numerous honors and awards for her work. Dr. Hwang is the author of more than 300 publications and serves on the boards of many companies, civic groups and universities.

The switch to lead-free solder raises issues on the manufacture, processing and reliability of lead-free electronic products. Adequate reliability of surface mount solder attachments can only be assured with a “Design for Reliability” based on solder joint behavior and the underlying fatigue damage mechanisms. Processing consistency and the quality of the resulting electronic assemblies, while of course necessary, are not the only parameters of reliability.

The physics-of-failure and failure statistics underlying SnPb solders in industry documents took over 30 years to develop. The available information for creep-fatigue behavior in lead-free solders is inadequate to determine the acceleration factors and to develop creep-fatigue models.

In this workshop, appropriate testing, which is even more important given the lack of acceleration factors for lead-free solders, to assess the extent of the various reliability threats will be discussed. Strategies to assure the reliability of solder attachments, printed circuit boards (PCBs), and components in electronic product subjected to lead-free soldering will be explained.

Topics to be Covered

• Reliability design considering the field use environment, product design life and the acceptable failure risk level.
• The complex nature of the interacting mechanisms underlying thermally induced solder joint fatigue combined with the highly temperature-, time- and stress-dependent behavior of solder will be explored. The special reliability threats to the solder attachments and to the printed circuit board (PCB) substrates and components based on using lead-free solders will be discussed.
• Load drivers and the resulting failure modes will be covered and illustrated by pertinent examples and illustrations.
• Solder attachment reliability can only be assured by understanding all the factors impacting the loading conditions on the solder joints.
• Solder creep-fatigue behavior as well as thermal cycling, vibration and mechanical shock are explained. The information on lead-free solders, which often seems contradictory, will be put into context with the creep-fatigue behavior of SnPb solders.

Who Will Benefit

The course is for anyone concerned with solder attachment reliability and those involved in any aspect of the design, assembly and application of surface mount technology and electronic packaging. Individuals involved in soldering, quality assurance and reliability for severe use environments and/or long product lives, such as telecommunications, military, automotive or satellite applications will benefit.

About the Instructor

Werner Engelmaier has over 42 years experience in electronic packaging and interconnection technology and is the president of Engelmaier Associates, L.C., a firm providing consulting services on reliability, manufacturing and processing aspects of electronic packaging and interconnection technology. He is the author of more than 170 technical publications and has been recognized for his work and industry leadership with numerous awards.

To meet the challenges of environmental compliance for electronics, companies need a roadmap to follow for all aspects of compliance. This roadmap should cover everything from initial assessments to creating technical compliance files for a company’s product, and all the steps in between.

Topics to be Covered

This workshop will describe how to create the roadmap, as well as the documents and methods needed to support the roadmap.

Who Should Attend

Project managers, management, engineers, QA engineers, technical writers, researchers, purchasing managers and anyone involved in environmental compliance readiness for electronics and electronics equipment.

About the Instructor

Krista Botsford is the founder and chief executive officer of 5-Trees. She is a subject matter expert on creating strategies for companies to meet increasingly stringent environmental initiatives. Before founding 5-Trees in 2005, Botsford worked in a number of technical positions at IBM in New York and California. She holds a B.S. in mechanical engineering and a M.S. in management.

Sponsorship Opportunities

Suppliers, manufacturers, and users will be in attendance at this conference. Your company can showcase its services and products as a tabletop exhibitor, or take advantage of one of the many sponsorship opportunities available for this conference.

View the list of available sponsorship opportunities here(.pdf) or contact Michelle Michelotti at +1 847-597-2822 or via e-mail at MichelleMichelotti@ipc.org.

Media Sponsors

Tabletop Exhibitor

We expect a strong turn-out for the tabletop display area during the conference breaks and lunch on December 4,2007. Don't miss out on this opportunity to reach your audience. For pricing information and a tabletop application click here(.pdf).

This tutorial provides a broad view of attachment reliability issues and trends for popular lead-free alloys such as SnAgCu (SAC). It is technical and pulls together a wide range of data, material properties, test and modeling results. Fundamental differences between SnPb and lead-free solders will be highlighted as well as recent progress in understanding lead-free solder joint reliability. Upon completion of the tutorial, attendees will gather that an apparent mess of seemingly confusing test results can, indeed, be turned into useful reliability information.

The performance of lead-free and mixed assemblies will be compared to SnPb assemblies and risk areas identified. Accelerated test results will be presented. Material properties and fatigue curves will explain differences in the reliability of SnPb and lead-free assemblies. Strain-energy-based life prediction models and acceleration factors will be presented that compare test efficiency for SnAgCu and SnPb assemblies and illustrate how to extrapolate lead-free test results to product-use conditions, the true measure of lead-free assembly reliability.

Topics to be Covered

• Get an overview of trends in lead free vs. SnPb accelerated testing results.
• Lead free vs. lead free: why all SAC alloys are not the same, reliability differences.
• Identify potential risk areas (metallurgical risks, ductile-to-brittle transition, interfacial failure).
• How to plan for lead-free product reliability assurance, and why inferior test results do not necessarily imply lessened product reliability.
• Gain understanding of fundamental differences in microstructure, creep mechanisms and the thermo-mechanical response of SnPb and SAC alloys.
• Understand the effect of thermal cycling dwell times on the relative lives of SnPb and SAC assemblies.
• Find out how to optimize lead-free accelerated thermal cycling profiles for maximum efficiency (and reduced cost) without lengthening test duration.
• How to interpret test results; strain-energy based life prediction models; examples of acceleration factors for SAC assemblies, including validation data.

Who Will Benefit

Design, materials, manufacturing, quality or reliability professionals and managers who are responsible for, or plan to implement, lead-free assembly technologies in their companies' products.

About the Instructor

The printed circuit board fabrication process is an intricate maze of interrelated steps, both chemical and mechanical. A thorough understanding of each step is critical to minimize or eliminate non-conforming defects, especially defects that increase costs and deter customers. Each process has its own set of variables affecting the performance of the finished product.

In this course, we will identify and explain these variables, along with the consequences of not properly controlling these processes. Plated-through hole voids, poor solderability, hole wall pullaway, mouse bites and delamination are just a few defects that we will cover so that you can manage the fabrication process effectively. We will review hundreds of slides showing microsection defects and discuss how they were caused and how to correct them.

Gain extensive practical knowledge in troubleshooting techniques. You'll learn how to identify the effects of up- and downstream processes in the PCB fabrication process, while learning the latest in processing alternatives, process and quality control.

Topics to be Covered

Innerlayer processing

• Surface preparation
• Imaging technologies
• Oxide process
• MLB lamination
• Drilling

PTH processing

• Panel/pattern plating of copper
• Tin/SnPb electroplating
• Nickel/gold plating (TAB Plating)
• Fusing
• SMOBC
• Alternatives to hot air solder leveling
• Solderability defect analysis
• Analytical controls of processing
• Testing of the deposit

Who Will Benefit

Anyone involved in PCB manufacturing, including quality control staff, process engineers, laboratory technicians and operators involved in the everyday operation of building printed boards will benefit form this course. Suppliers to the PCB industry will also find this workshop very beneficial.

About the Instructor

Michael Carano is vice president of technical operations for Electrochemicals, Inc. He is a member of, and a teacher for, the American Electroplaters and Surface Finishers Society. He has authored numerous articles in the areas of copper plating, tin plating, PCB technologies and analytical control of electroplating baths. He is also on the IPC Board of Directors.

The electronics industry is moving rapidly to lead-free soldering. With this movement, the industry is seeing a new importance in the solderable finishes that protect the bare copper prior to assembly. In addition to coplanarity, these surface finishes provide the optimum lead-free solder paste spreadability and lead-free solder through-hole fill for optimum joint strength. Higher temperature melting points for lead-free solders will add additional heat stress and aging. How will this impact solderability and long-term reliability? Attend this workshop and find out. Learn what printed circuit board manufacturers must do to be successful with lead-free finishes. In addition, assembly personnel will gain better insight into managing the transition to lead-free soldering using lead-free surface finishes.

Topics to be Covered

• Solderability overview
• Metallic coatings: electroplated nickel-gold, electroless nickel-immersion gold, palladium, immersion tin, immersion silver
• Thin organic coatings versus thick organic coatings
• Compatibility of lead-free surface finishes with lead-free solders
• Paste spreadability studies
• Through-hole fill studies
• Joint strength testing
• Effects of aging and multiple thermal cycles on solderability
• Process control: solderability checks, deposit integrity
• Cost implications of lead-free finishes

Who Will Benefit

Management, engineers, technicians, project managers, purchasing managers, QA engineers, researchers and others involved in forming and implementing manufacturing strategies for lead-free surface finishes and lead-free soldering, and those who are interested in lead-free components and PCB surface finishes. Printed circuit board process engineers will learn the key criteria for ensuring the optimum performance of each lead-free surface finish.

About the Instructor

Michael Carano is vice president of technical operations for Electrochemicals, Inc. He is a member of and a teacher for the American Electroplaters and Surface Finishers Society. He has authored numerous articles in the areas of copper plating, tin plating, PCB technologies, and analytical control of electroplating baths. He is also on the IPC Board of Directors.

Looking for Savings?

• Early Registration — Register by November 5, 2007, and save an additional 10% off of the prices shown below.
• Group Discount — Register three individuals from your company at the same time and receive the fourth
  registration FREE. * Note: The discount will apply to the lowest-cost registration.