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Extensive failure analysis was performed on identical, isothermally cycled wafer-level chip scale packages with Sn3.8wt%0.7wt%Ag (SAC387) solder joints. Packages were periodically removed during the cycling process to observe crack front progression. The packages were dipped in liquid nitrogen to reduce solder ductility and then pried apart. The crack areas were observed under an optical microscope. The average crack areas on the corner and mid-edge joints of the package were measured using an image processing software. 50 packages were characterized from 240 to 7200 cycles at every 240 cycles. An average of 20 solder joints per cycle was observed to estimate the crack length and area. A finite element model of this package was constructed in ABAQUS. The solder interconnects of the model were given full plastic and creep properties. Using the failure analysis data and the finite element model, the material constant value in a previously developed hierarchal fracture model was calibrated for SAC387. The ability of the model to predict non-intuitive failure initiation sites due to the under bump metallurgy (UBM) geometry is demonstrated. The hierarchal fracture process model was inspired by information theory and continuum thermodynamics. It was earlier proposed to capture the length-scale and temporal hierarchy inherent in quasi-static fracture processes. This single parameter model allows for a non-empirical, geometry independent approach to predicting crack growth by relating equivalent inelastic dissipations and a material constant to the probability of fracture at a material point.

The hierarchal fracture process model is a theory derived from continuum thermodynamics and information theory. This single parameter model provides a non-empirical approach able to predict crack growth for solder interconnects regardless of package or solder interconnect geometry. The model relates inelastic dissipations to the probability of failure at a given material point. The hierarchal fracture process model is used to predict crack growth and fatigue lives in a package with atypical solder interconnect geometry: a quad-flat-no-lead (QFN) package. The fracture model uses the material parameter calibrated for Sn3.8wt%0.7wt%Cu solder in a previous study of wafer-level CSP packages. Finite element models of these packages are created in ABAQUS with the solder interconnects given full creep and plastic properties. The results obtained from the hierarchal fracture process model are validated against the experimentally obtained fatigue lives and cross-sectional images of the crack path.Copyright © 2009 by ASME

Predicting reliability of solder joints requires a thorough understanding of solder constitutive behavior. Recent studies on SnAgCu solder alloys have reported that pre-test conditions of aging-time and aging-temperatures can be factors that significantly affect solder constitutive behavior. The results presented here are a part of ongoing efforts to construct constitutive models that can predict aging affects on behavior of SnAgCu solder alloys. In this work, creep test results on aged Sn3.8Ag0.7Cu samples are reported, and aging effects are discussed primarily on secondary creep behavior and on microstructure. Aging effects on primary creep are observed, and will be discussed, and modeled in a future work. Experiments to characterize behavior were carried out using double-lap shear tests on specimens specifically prepared to represent realistic microstructures, and mitigate effects of joint geometry, and stress heterogeneity during test conditions. Aging temperatures of -10deg C, 25deg C, 75deg C and 125deg C, and aging times of 15, 30, 60 and 90 days (at each aging temperature) were selected as different levels of factors in a statistically designed experiment. Previous studies have focused on developing constitutive models without due considerations to aging effects, the results presented herein augment aging-informed constitutive model development efforts that are currently in progress.

Solder joints are subjected to different loading conditions depending on the application environment. Desktop and server applications for example, involve thermomechanical fatigue loads at low-strain rates and the dominant mode of failure is creep fatigue. Mobile electronics applications on the other hand, are subject to dynamic stresses on the solder joint during impact. In our previous work, we developed a constitutive model based on mechanical test data at low strain rates. Experiments were carried out using double-lap shear test specimens of specially prepared solder assemblies over strain rate regimes of 10-6 to 10-3 s-1 [D. Bhate et al.]. In this work, the previous experimental results are augmented with tests performed at higher strain rates (10-3 to 102 s-1) at room temperature. These experiments were performed using two different experimental setups: a MTS 810 uniaxial compression tester and a Split Hopkinson Pressure Bar (SHPB). The experimental results demonstrate a remarkably consistent relationship between the yield stress and the strain rate over eight decades of strain rate! We also fit the data to viscoplastic constitutive models popularly available in commercial finite element programs. Although the constitutive models are built using data at low strain rate regimes, the model is shown to be a reasonable fit to the experimental data over the entire strain rate regime under consideration (10-6 to 102 s-1). The differences in observed behavior under compression and tension are discussed, along with a microstructural study of the samples used in the tests.

Predicting the fatigue life of solder interconnections is a challenge due to the complex nonlinear behavior of solder alloys and the importance of the load history. Long experience with Sn–Pb solder alloys together with empirical fatigue life models such as the Coffin–Manson rule have helped us identify reliable choices among package design alternatives. However, for the currently popular Pb-free choice of SnAgCu solder joints, designing accelerated thermal cycling tests and estimating the fatigue life are challenged by the significantly different creep behavior relative to Sn–Pb alloys. In this paper, a hybrid fatigue modeling approach inspired by nonlinear fracture mechanics is developed to predict the crack trajectory and fatigue life of a solder interconnection. The model is shown to be similar to well accepted cohesive zone models in its theoretical development and application and is anticipated to be computationally more efficient compared to cohesive zone models in a finite element setting. The approach goes beyond empirical modeling in accurately predicting crack trajectories and is validated against experiments performed on lead-free as well as Sn–Pb solder joint containing microelectronic packages. Material parameters relevant to the model are estimated via a coupled experimental and numerical technique.

The need for predicting fatigue life in solder joints is well appreciated at the present time. Currently, however, there are very few experimentally validated material parameters for popular SnAgCu alloys. Furthermore, the validity of Coffin-Manson life models, being empirical, also needs to be explored for these alloys which creep in a manner significantly different from SnPb solder alloys. In this paper, we present a modeling approach inspired by cohesive zone theory of modern fracture mechanics and Weibull distributions of material failure. The approach relies on the accurate estimation of inelastic strains at the crack tip estimated through finite element analysis, which are then used to make decisions on crack propagation. Like most popular cohesive zone models, the modeling approach presented here requires the estimation of two parameters. Unlike most cohesive zone models however, no special elements are needed in the finite element model and estimation of the parameters is more straightforward. We demonstrate the applicability of the modeling approach via the simulation of fatigue crack growth in Sn3.8Ag0.7Cu solder joints subjected to anisotropic thermal cycling. Anisotropic thermal cycling conditions were created experimentally using a simulated power cycling testing device and fatigue crack fronts were tracked at different life cycles using traditional dye-and-pry methods. The experiments were repeated for varying temperature profiles. Experimental results were coupled with numerical analysis to obtain fracture parameters for Sn3.8Ag0.7Cu. The model and the parameters were then validated by verifying their predictive ability against a variety of temperature profiles. In a separate study, the authors have developed a time hardening creep model for describing the behavior of Sn3.8Ag0.7Cu. The time hardening model accounts for primary and secondary creep and does not restrict itself to the assumption of steady state creep. The need for accurate estimation of inelastic strains in the finite element model is thus met using a valid constitutive model to describe solder creep behavior. The ability of the model to predict three dimensional crack fronts for a variety of fatigue loading environments, with sufficient accuracy, is a key result of this work.

Compared to Sn-Pb solder joints, our understanding of the fatigue of SnAgCu solder joints is far from complete. The challenges to achieving a complete understanding of SnAgCu solder joint fatigue arise partly from their significantly different creep behavior and vulnerability to micro structure evolution (aging). In this paper, we present results from thermal fatigue tests carried out with the help of a simulated power cycling tester. The test specimens were 1.27 mm pitch Ceramic Ball-Grid Array (CBGA) components with two lead-free solder alloy compositions - Sn3.8Ag0.7Cu and Sn3.0Ag0.5Cu. The components were subjected to hot dwells at 100degC for 10, 30 and 60 minutes to study the effect of dwell time on the fatigue life -a total of 48 components were tested. The resulting failure data was fit to a Weibull distribution. The packages were stored at room temperature prior to testing and the effect of the time of storage on the fatigue life was also studied. Finite element analyses were performed to study the effect of hot dwell time on the fatigue life of the CBGA component.

Constitutive models for SnAgCu solder alloys are of great interest at the present. Commonly, constitutive models that have been successfully used in the past for Sn-Pb solders are used to describe the behavior of SnAgCu solder alloys. Two issues in the modeling of lead-free solders demand careful attention: (i) Lead-free solders show significantly different creep strain evolution with time, stress and temperature, and the assumption of evolution to steady state creep nearly instantaneously may not be valid in SnAgCu alloys and (ii) Models derived from bulk sample test data may not be reliable when predicting deformation behavior at the solder interconnection level for lead-free solders due to the differences in the inherent microstructures at these different scales. In addition, the building of valid constitutive models from test data derived from tests on solder joints must deconvolute the effects of joint geometry and its influence on stress heterogeneity. Such issues have often received insufficient attention in prior constitutive modeling efforts. In this study all of the above issues are addressed in developing constitutive models of Sn3.8Ag0.7Cu and Sn1.0Ag0.5Cu solder alloys, which represent the extremes of Ag composition that have been mooted at the present time. The results of monotonic testing are reported for strain rates ranging from 4.02E-6 to 2.40E-3 s−1 . The creep behavior at stress levels ranging from 7.8 to 52 MPa are also described. Both types of tests were performed at temperatures of 25°C, 75°C and 125°C. The popular Anand model and the classical time-hardening creep model are fit to the data and the experimentally obtained model parameters are reported. The test data are compared against other reported data in the literature and conclusions are drawn on the plausible sources of error in the data reported in the prior literature.Copyright © 2007 by ASME

Predicting the fatigue life of solder interconnections is a challenge due to the complex nonlinear behavior of solder alloys and the load history. Long experience with Sn-Pb solder alloys together with empirical fatigue life models such as the Coffin-Manson rule have helped us identify reliable choices among package design alternatives. However, for the currently popular Pb-free choice of SnAgCu solder joints, designing accelerated thermal cycling tests and estimating the fatigue life are challenged by the significantly different creep behavior relative to Sn-Pb alloys. This study is divided into two parts: In the first part, a hybrid fatigue modeling approach inspired by nonlinear fracture mechanics is discussed. The hybrid fatigue model has been shown to predict the crack trajectory and fatigue life of a Sn-Pb solder interconnection subjected to both isothermal accelerated thermal and anisothermal power cycling conditions. In the second part, results of experimental characterization via fatigue testing of microelectronic packages with SnAgCu solder interconnections subjected to anisothermal power cycling conditions are described. Packages of different geometries were tested to study the effects of these variations on the estimation of fatigue life. The afore mentioned hybrid model relies on the estimation of two fracture parameters which are to be determined experimentally. In this study, a novel technique involving tracking crack fronts in solder interconnections as a function of number of fatigue cycles is proposed to estimate these fracture parameters that can be then used to model fatigue crack growth using the hybrid modeling technique.

Predicting the fatigue life of solder interconnections is a challenge due to the complex nonlinear behavior of solder alloys and the load history. Long experience with Sn-Pb solder alloys together with empirical fatigue life models such as the Coffin-Manson rule have helped us identify reliable choices among package design alternatives. However, for the currently popular Pb-free choice of SnAgCu solder joints, designing accelerated thermal cycling tests and estimating the fatigue life are challenged by the significantly different creep behavior relative to Sn-Pb alloys. In this paper, a hybrid fatigue modeling approach inspired by nonlinear fracture mechanics is developed to predict the crack trajectory and fatigue life of a solder interconnection subjected to both isothermal accelerated thermal and anisothermal power cycling conditions. The model is shown to be similar to well accepted cohesive zone models in its approach and application and is anticipated to be computationally more efficient in a finite element setting. The approach goes beyond empirical modeling in accurately predicting crack trajectories. It is argued that such non-empirical models that capture the physics of material degradation and failure can form the basis for determining meaningful Pb-free solder environmental testing conditions as well as the acceleration factors relative to field use