Creep corrosion failure analysis on ENIG printed circuit boards

Abstract

The proliferation of the Internet of Things (IOT) and the increasing reliance on cloud computing are critically dependent on the reliable operation of Information Technology (IT) equipment. The associated increase in the power consumption by IT equipment is putting pressure on the data center administrators to expand the temperature-humidity operating envelope and in some cases resorting to airside economizers, thereby, exposing their mission critical IT equipment to gaseous and particulate contamination, especially in regions with high pollution levels. It is therefore incumbent on the IT equipment manufacturers to not only improve the performance of their products but to also make them more robust against the harsher environments in which their products are expected to operate. I t is necessary to develop more accurate failure models and as well as more reliability qualification test methods for the known failure modes such as the creep corrosion on printed circuit boards (PCB). Creep corrosion is the corrosion of copper and sometimes silver metallization on PCBs and the creep of the associated corrosion products to the extent that the corrosion products electrically short circuits closely spaced metallized features on PCBs.