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Difference of Potential Range Formed at the Anode Between Water Drop Test and Temperature Humidity Bias Test to Evaluate Electrochemical Migration of Solders for Printed Circuit Board
Received: June 06, 2023; Revised: June 20, 2023; Accepted: June 20, 2023
Abstract: Two types of accelerated tests, Water Drop Test (WDT) and Temperature-Humidity-Bias Test (THBT), can be used to evaluate the susceptibility to electrochemical migration (ECM). In the WDT, liquid water is directly applied to a specimen, typically a patterned conductor like a printed circuit board. Time to failure in the WDT typically ranges from several seconds to several minutes. On the other hand, the THBT is conducted under elevated temperature and humidity conditions, allowing for assessment of design and life cycle factors on ECM. THBT is widely recognized as a more suitable method for reliability testing than WDT. In both test methods, localized corrosion can be observed on the anode. Composition of dendrites formed during the WDT is similar to that formed during THBT. However, there is a lack of correlation between the time to failure obtained from WDT and that obtained from THBT. In this study, we investigated the relationship between electrochemical parameters and time to failure obtained from both WDT and THBT. Differences in time to failure can be attributed to actual anode potential obtained in the two tests.