Lead-free solder implementation for automotive electronics

Lead-free solders for electronics have been actively pursued since the early 1990's here and abroad for environmental, legislative, and competitive reasons. The National Center for Manufacturing Sciences (NCMS-US), the International Tin Research Institute (ITRI-UK), Swedish Institute of Production Engineering Research (IVF-Sweden), Japan Institute of Electronics Packaging (JIEP-Japan), Improved Design Life and Environmentally Aware Manufacture of Electronics Assemblies by Lead-free Soldering (IDEALS-Europe), and, more recently, the National Electronics Manufacturing Initiative (NEMI-US) have been aggressively seeking lead-free solutions. The automotive environment is one of the toughest since it includes chemicals both solvents and salt spray, wide temperature ranges, vibration, and humidity. A change in alloy requires extensive testing and durable materials. Tests of PWB surface finishes, Tg, and thickness will be described as they relate to lead-free solder implementation. Requirements for boards and components will also be discussed.