Introduction
What are the WEEE and RoHS Directives?
How will the Directives affect my company?
Actions for complying with WEEE
Actions for Complying with RoHS
Introduction to lead free
Choosing your materials
Laminates
Solderable finishes
Components
Component finishes
Lead-free solders
Soldering
Hand Soldering
Reflow Soldering
Wave Soldering
Faults
Solder Balling
Tombstoning
Fillet Lifting
Tin Whiskering
Tin Pest
Component failure
Popcorning
PCB warping
Conductive Anodic Filaments
PCB Barrel Cracking
Measling and delamination
Inspection
Optical Inspection
X-ray inspection
In circuit testing (ICT)
Inspection summary
Lead-free reliability
Factors impacting long term reliability
Testing
General observations
Further information
How do I raise awareness?
Tools resources and further information
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Lead-Free / Lead-Free reliability / Reliability summary
   


Reliability summary

  • Where long term solder joint reliability is deemed to be important it is necessary to pay careful attention to all aspects of the manufacturing process and indeed the subsequent operational environment.

  • If the appropriate materials and processing conditions are used there is no particular reason why Lead-Free assembly reliability should not be equal to, or even exceed, that of tin-lead solder.

  • There are many factors that influence solder joint reliably, including the choice of materials and the assembly conditions.

  • In-service operational conditions influence long-term solder joint reliability in ways which can vary significantly between solder alloys.

  • The major Lead-Free alloys recommended for use in Europe have significantly differing properties to the tin-lead alloys they are replacing. (melting points, flow, wettability, mechanical properties, appearance).