Reliability estimation of solder joints under thermal fatigue with varying parameters by using FORM and MCS

Abstract

One of major reasons for the failure of solder joints is thermal fatigue. Also, the failure of solder joints under thermal fatigue loading is influenced by varying boundary conditions such as the material of the solder joint, the materials of substrates(related to the difference in CTE), the height of solder, the distance of the solder joint from the neutral point (DNP), the temperature variation and the dwell time. In this paper, first, the experimental results obtained from thermal fatigue test are compared to the outcomes from theoretical thermal fatigue life equations. Second, the effects of varying boundary conditions on the failure probability of the solder joint are studied by using probabilistic methods such as the first order reliability method (FORM) and Monte Carlo simulation (MCS).