Improved meshing strategy for finite element modeling of PBGA thermal cycling

Plastic Ball Grid Array (PBGA) technologies are among the most popular and cost effective methods for packaging of medium to high I/O count semiconductor chips. Computational simulations with three dimensional finite element analysis (FEA) software are often utilized to predict the stresses, strains, and deformations of PBGA assemblies subjected to thermal cycling. These simulation results are then coupled with appropriate failure criteria to estimate solder joint fatigue life.