High-performance and space-qualified hybrid integrated circuit based on multi-group homogeneous gradient eutectic in quality conformance inspection

Abstract

The quality and reliability of high integration electronic components has become one of the main issues restricting the advancement of aerospace products. During the development of a military-standard microwave hybrid integrated circuit, the penetration rate of the eutectic welding of the thin film substrates, thick film substrates, and carrier plates in the cavity directly affects the significant performance characteristics, such as gain and working current. By using of traditional process methods, the hybrid integrated circuit cannot pass the experiments (group A, group B, group C and group D) which presents the different types of grouping categories, test parameters, along with acceptance criteria that the quality conformance inspection (QCI) stipulated in the GJB 2438B General Specification for Hybrid Integrated Circuits, which is due to the low rate of finished products. We propose and experimentally demonstrate a multi-group homogeneous gradient eutectic-based method with penetration rate of >92 %, which ensured the grounding performance and reliability inspection requirements of the individual circuit unit. When the hybrid integrated circuit works under the temperature range −55~+125 °C and other environmental test conditions, the delta limits of working current and gain are kept in the extreme range of ±10 mA and ±2 dB which shows high stability and reliability. Then we finally achieved that the aerospace product successfully passed the QCI. Our research progress can expand the process applications of Class K(Space-Qualified) hybrid integrated circuits with the maximum level of assurance for use in extreme environment applications such as space where reliability is paramount.