Product Preview
11/01/2003
Following are some of the many innovative new products that can be seen this month at the International Microelectronics and Packaging Society (IMAPS) Symposium in Boston.
For more information, enter the corresponding numbers on at the online center Web site, which is located at www.onlinecenter.to/ap.
High-precision Microtest
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5848 MicroTester is said to be for testing microelectronic devices, MEMS, photonic and other small components. Additionally, it provides precise load and displacement measurement capability combined with good cyclic performance. With a load capacity of 2 kN, the system reportedly provides the submicron position measurement accuracy and high-precision load and position control capability required for static testing of micro-components and the dynamic performance needed for cyclic fatigue testing. The design includes a rigid frame, capable of being used in either horizontal or vertical orientations, which ensures accurate and repeatable deformation measurements. A specially designed encoder, mounted directly on the loading actuator, provides position measurement resolution of better than 20 nanometers. Instron, Canton, Mass., www.instron.com.
Ball Placement System
A ball grid array placement system, BGA-2000 is a large manual desktop BGA placer for rapid as well as low-volume prototyping. Reportedly marketed to the packaging field, the system is designed for fluxing and placing BGAs on semiconductor packaging. Low cost with a manual hand print function, the placer features quick setup for both ease of use and quick cleanup. Additionally, it is said to be capable of holding up to a 12 ± 12" stencil. The system can handle compact desktop design as well as X, Y, Z and Theta height adjustments. With a print area of 8 x 10", the placer offers registration repeatability of ±0.0005", X-Y adjustment of ±0.750" and Theta adjustment of ± 10°. The system also features a hand squeegee and is simple to use. Milara Inc., Medfield, Mass., www.milarasmt.com.
Dispense Platform
This company's Dynamic Dispense Control (DCC) feature is available on the Axiom X-1020 platform series, and is said to offer precise and flexible control parameters through closed-loop servo technology. Novice users reportedly can benefit from the simple user interface, and the more advanced user can utilize the more powerful features, such as the patented Mass Flow Calibration and linear pump technology. The position of the dispense pump motor is controlled using Fluidmove for Windows NT software and a PID controller for accurate dispensing of dots and lines. Through the use of encoder control and feedback from the dispensing pump, the user can program the start up and ending ramp speeds of the pump, and accurately determine how many encoder counts the pump is allowed to turn. This high level of pump control allows for each dispense to be optimized for speed, accuracy and yield. Asymtek, Carlsbad, Calif., www.asymtek.com.
Reflow Encapsulant
A reflow encapsulant material intended for flip-chip-on-flex applications, SE-CURE 9110 is a single component liquid epoxy-based flux and underfill encapsulant. Said to eliminate process time associated with traditional underfill process methods through an innovative compression flow technique, the material allows processing of normal surface mount component packages concurrently with flip chips in a single reflow profile. Additionally, the encapsulant reportedly provides a robust resin system that is both a eutectic and lead-free assembly solution with one material; mechanical properties that are optimized to provide reliability and mechanical shock protection; proven performance in touch applications; and more. Kester, Northrop Grumman Corp., Des Plaines, Ill., www.kester.com.
Lead-free Solder Paste
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A lead-free solder paste optimized for reflow in air on a range of PCB assembly applications, Multicore LF320 is said to require a minimum peak reflow temperature of 229° C, vs. the common 240° C minimum. This 10° C advantage provides a safety margin when reflowing temperature-sensitive components. With a print speed range of 25 to 100 mms-1 and an ..abandon time up to two hours, the paste reportedly offers good wetting on a range of surface finishes. Additionally, the paste has been formulated to provide high resistance to slump and solder balling. Typical end use applications include automotive, telecommunications, consumer products and computer assemblies. Henkel Loctite Corp., Industry, Calif., www.loctite.com/electronics.
Wafer Positioning System
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DynamYX GT 300 mm air-bearing wafer positioning system reportedly offers high throughput and flexibility through six axis of ..precision motion control including an integrated three-axis tip/tilt stage. The positioner is a high-precision system designed for the demands of 300 mm wafer processing in high-throughput semiconductor manufacturing. For optimum stability, the system's lightweight stage is constructed of silicon carbide, with a density close to aluminum and strength similar to that of steel, high stiffness and a close thermal match to both granite and silicon. High-speed, high-accuracy wafer alignment is said to be achieved with the system's three-axis X-tip-tilt stage integrated on the carriage in a low mass, low profile and noncontact design. Newport Corp., Irvine, Calif., www.newport.com.
Liquid Metering Pumps
This company announces the addition of liquid metering pumps to their Wash Tank Conditioning program. Wash Bath Conditioning is the maintenance of chemical concentrations and continual removal of soils. The conditioning is said to allow for process performance optimization as well as maximized tank life. The high-concentrate industrial line of liquid metering pumps consists of three pumps with a 1:100 to 1:20 ratio; a 1:50 to 1:10 ratio; and a 1:20 to 1:5 ratio. Additionally, the pumps are water powered and proportional. Volumetric metering reportedly ensures accuracy, reliability and repeatability. The pump line offers the key advantage of water pressure and flow that do not affect operation, and the fact that the pumps feature on-demand dispensing eliminates waste. Kyzen Corp., Nashville, Tenn., www.kyzen.com.
Convection Belt Ovens
The Paragon series of convection belt ovens meets the thermal processing needs of advanced semiconductor packaging applications, especially where a highly uniform thermal reflow precision atmosphere control is needed. The series is said to be comprised of flexible, workhorse reflow ovens for multiple semiconductor packaging processes such as die attach, wafer bump reflow and curing. Additionally, the oven reportedly provides low oxygen ppm levels, low nitrogen consumption, a 400°C maximum temperature rating for lead-free processing, and forced impingement convection for efficient and consistent heat transfer. The convection ovens have been custom configured for semiconductor packaging applications, including a 14" tunnel width with 1"product clearance option that can reduce the user's overall nitrogen consumption while increasing the purity of the atmosphere. BTU International, North Billerica, Mass., www.btu.com.
Fine-pitch Bond Tester
Designed to meet the demands of testing ultra-fine-pitch wire bonded devices, Series 5000 Bondtester is capable of testing bonds at pitches of 50 µm and below. The series reportedly includes many advances such as leading-edge optical systems to help operators align and grade bonds, low-force transducer systems, and shear and pull tooling to minimize lead and ball damage. The tester offers many features including easily adjustable optics mounting, low-force/high-resolution load cartridges, "quick guard" load tools, borescope image system, high-precision X, Y sample manipulation, antivibration mount and cavity shear. Dage Precision Industries, Fremont, Calif., www.dageinc.com.
Microwave Bonder
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Developed from the 6400, Model 6400DA features a 90° wire feed in the deep-access bond head that reportedly is for packages with limited ..space, such as microwave and fiber optic components. The bonder can bond to all aspects of demanding microwave wire bonding applications, including the lange couplers, stitch bonds and small fet pad geometries. Loop and tail control are said to be key to successful microwave bonding, and the cascade clamping system allows processing of a range of wire and ribbon dimensions with high accuracy. The system provides the capability of bonding 0.007" wire as well as large 1 ¥ 10 ribbon. All bonding quality is monitored and recorded using the company's bond process control (BPC) technology. Additionally, the system offers DataTracer, a real-time inspection software feature that monitors and records die placement accuracy and planarity, and records all bond data to each die. F&K Delvotec Inc. USA, Foothill Ranch, Calif., www.fkdelvotecusa.com.
Semiconductor Coatings
A series of high-temperature junction coatings for power resistors, diodes and rectifiers, these high-purity systems reportedly offer environmental protection and high-reliability performance. Coating Type I is a one-part system with high dielectric strength. Coatings 3811 and 3812, however, are said to be for preventing electrical breakdown and minimizing junction surface leakage. Transene Co., Danvers, Mass., www.transene.com.
Defluxing System
SMT800-LD Aqueous Cleaning/Defluxing System reportedly is for removing all post-reflow solder pastes, including lead-free. The cleaners are said to be fully networkable, allowing observation or operation from any PC with the user's network. Additionally, the cleaning system is equipped with a four-sided, 36 nozzle spray system, powered by two high-performance stainless steel spray pumps for tough cleaning applications such as lead-free. Completely automatic, the system provides wash, rinse, cleanliness testing and drying at the touch of a button. Aqueous Technologies Corp., Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., www.aqueoustech.com.
Green Tape
Recent enhancements to the 943 Low Loss Green Tape material system include the commercialization of embedded resistor and surface resistor compositions. A complete offering of gold, silver and mixed-metal systems is available and designed for high-frequency applications by providing low dielectric loss at high frequencies. A design kit for the system will reportedly help designers get to market faster by providing tools to create schematics and more. DuPont Microcircuit Materials, Research Triangle Park, NC, www.dupont.com/mcm.
Bonding System
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A high accuracy automatic flip chip bonding system, TRIAD .5 AP is said to be optimized for cost-effective volume production of optoelectronics modules with a bonding and post-bonding accuracy of 0.5 µm. Equipped with one bonding head, the system achieves a throughput of up to 200 units per hour. With the option of two bonding heads, throughput increases to more than 350 units per hour. The ..system accepts piece parts with sizes in the range of 0.1 to 10.0 mm and with a thickness to 30 mm. Additionally, the bonder reportedly performs passive as well as active alignment for fine tuning. Compared to existing bonding systems for optoelectronics modules, it features a range of different bonding processes such as reflow, UV curing, laser welding and ultrasonic welding. An infrared station for inspection offers the ability to measure post-bonding accuracy, which can feed data back into the tool to further improve system accuracy. SUSS MicroTec, Munich, Germany, www.suss.de.