Blog

Solder voids in electronics often look like critical defects, but they are a natural part of the manufacturing process. This article demystifies X-ray void analysis, explaining the IPC-A-610 standards and why the location of a void is more important than its size for ensuring long-term product reliability.

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Discover the mechanics behind creating reliable castellated edges on your PCBs. This guide explains how to prevent common failures like copper tearing and solder bridging by focusing on correct geometry, anchor vias, surface finish, and clear fabrication notes.

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Standard ENIG gold plating is often too soft for edge connectors, leading to rapid abrasion, connection failure, and costly field recalls. Understanding the difference between soft ENIG and durable Hard Gold is critical for designing reliable hardware.

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When MLCCs crack and yield drops, don’t blame the pick-and-place machine. The true cause is almost always board flex during depaneling, which creates a telltale 45-degree crack signature that can lead to field failures long after the board passes factory tests.

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Visual inspection is no longer enough to stop sophisticated counterfeit components. To protect your supply chain, you must go beyond the label and use V-I curve tracing to interrogate the physics of the device and verify its authenticity against a known golden unit.

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Many SMT defects like bridging and voiding are blamed on the reflow oven, but the root cause is often cold slump—the solder paste spreading and collapsing at room temperature due to poor handling and environmental moisture. This invisible failure happens long before the board sees any heat.

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