Reliability Matters

Episode 60: A Conversation with Rockwell Collins' Dave Hillman about Solder VoidingSolder voiding has been with us longer than we know. Modern X-ray inspection technology has allowed assemblers to see and quantify voiding. Metallurgical expert Dave Hillman from Rockwell Collins explains the causes and possible remedies for solder voiding. Dave Hillman is a Metallurgical Engineer in the Advanced Operations Engineering Department of Collins Aerospace in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He serves as a consultant to manufacturing on material and processing problems. He served as a Subject Matter Expert for the Lead-free Manhattan Project in 2009. He has published numerous technical papers and was presented with the 2008 SMTA International Conference on Soldering & Reliability “Best of Conference” award and was the recipient of the SMTA “Member of Technical Distinction” Award. Dave was awarded the Da Vinci medal as a Rockwell Engineer of the Year. He serves as the Chairman of the IPC JSTD-002 Solderability committee. He’s also a member of the SMTA where he serves on the SMTA Journal and Soldering & Surface Mount Technology Journal Technical Paper Review committees. He’s a member of the American Society for Metals, the Minerals, Metals & Materials Society, and IPC.If you’re in the electronics assembly industry, you’ve probably seen Dave at numerous technical conferences, imparting wisdom with a style unique to Dave. Dave Hillman may be reached here:david.hillman@collins.com

Episode 59: My guest, Eric Fossum is best known for the invention of the CMOS image sensor better known as the “camera-on-a-chip” used in billions of cameras, from smart phones to web cameras to ingestible pill cameras to DSLRs. In 2017, Eric was a co-recipient of the Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering, the world's top engineering prize (and considered by many as equivalent to the Nobel Prize) for the invention of digital imaging sensors. Eric was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame and is member of the National Academy of Engineering. He is a solid-state image sensor device physicist and engineer, and his career has included academic and government research, and entrepreneurial leadership of several startups. He is the John H. Krehbiel Sr. Professor of Emerging Technologies at the Thayer School of Engineering at Dartmouth college. Eric also serves as Associate Provost of Dartmouth College for Entrepreneurship and Technology Transfer, and directs Dartmouth's PhD Innovation Programs. Eric recently co-founded another startup with his former students, Gigajot Technology, Inc.

Episode 58: 2020 Round-UpOn this last episode of 2020 there are no guests, no experts, no best-practice advice. Just a short recap of 2020. We just reached more than 10,000 downloads of the podcast! A HUGE thank you to my audience and my guests for making this podcast possible! On this episode I'll announce the first few guests of the 2021 season of Reliability Matters. This is looking like a terrific season!We are now producing an audio-only format and a video format. The video format may be viewed on our new YouTube channel at:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC43S4--AIuSqlXvxmdsA7AQ Please keep your questions and topic suggestions coming! Email me at:mike@mikekonrad.comThanks everyone for making this podcast successful!Mike KonradReliability Matters

Episode 57: A Conversation with CAF Expert Graham Naisbitt Conductive Anodic Filament (CAF) is a form of Electrical-Chemical-Migration (ECM). Unlike surface-level ECM, CAF exists beneath the surface of the circuit assembly. Graham and I discuss the causes of CAF and methods to test for and mitigate CAF.Graham has an extensive history working in the electrical and electronic manufacturing industry. Graham was the IEC 1906 Lord Kelvin Award Winner. IEC TC91 WG2, 3 and 10 Maintenance Leader of 4 Standards. He is Vice-Chair of the IPC 5-30 Cleaning and Coating Sub-Committee overseeing 15 IPC Standards Development Committees. He has received 14 IPC Standards Awards and is a BSI British Standards Institution (EPL501) Member.Graham is a Specialist in Insulation Resistance Testing, Ionic Contamination Control, Solderability, Conformal Coating materials and application systems, including Cleaning, Inspection and Test. Graham may be reached here:graham.naisbitt@gen3systems.com

Episode 56: A Conversation about Solder Voiding with Solder Materials, Stencil, and Cleaning ExpertsVoiding is the cause of multiple failure mechanisms. I spoke with solder material expert Tim O'Neill of Aim Solder, stencil manufacturer Prakash Gango of StenTech, and cleaning materials manufacturer Kalyan Nukala of Zestron about how solder voiding leads to product failures and methods to reduce voiding.My guests may be reached here:Tim O'NeillAim Soldertoneill@aimsolder.comwww.aimsolder.comPrakash GangoStenTechprakash@stentech.comwww.stentech.comKalyan NukalaKalyan.Nukala@zestronusa.comwww.zestron.com

My guest today is Dr. Martin Anselm. Martin is a professor at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) and is also the newly elected President of the Surface Mount Technology Association or SMTA.Martin also worked for Universal Instruments. During his 12 year career at Universal Instruments, Martin was, among other positions, a Process Research Engineer and Manager of Failure Analysis Services.Martin completed his Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering through Binghamton University. His research topic involved Copper Nickel Tin intermetallic formation kinetics on electroless Nickel substrates. Martin also completed a Masters of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Clarkson and an undergraduate degree in Physics from SUNY Geneseo.

Episode 54: A Conversation with Michael Ford about Digital TwinMichael Ford and I talk about Digital Twin, its purpose, value, and its future.Michael Ford, Sr.Director of Emerging Industry StrategyAegis SoftwareMichael Ford has more than 30 years working within the electronics assembly manufacturing space.Michael has a degree in Electronics from the University of Wales, Michael started his career with Sony in the UK, creating software solutions as he acquired a broad range of manufacturing knowledge. He spent eight years working in Japan which provided Michael the opportunity to expand his innovation and leadership on a global enterprise scale. Today, Michael is the Sr. Director of Emerging Industry Strategy for Aegis Software. Having worked with specialized software solution providers in the industry, Michael is an established thought leader for Industry 4.0 and Smart factories. Michael is also actively working on industry standards with the IPC, including his position as chair of new traceability standard, IPC-1782. Earlier this year, Michael’s Thought leadership on Industry 4.0 manufacturing and development of the IPC Connected Factory Exchange (CFX) was formally recognized when IPC awarded him with the prestigious president’s award.Michael spoke to me from his office in the UK.Michael may be reached at:mford@aiscorp.com

Episode 53: Meet the Press - A Conversation with Industry Journalists about the State of the EMS IndustryIn this episode, I speak with Mike Buetow, Editor In Chief of Circuits Assembly and Printed Circuit Design and Fab magazines, Trevor Galbraith, publisher of Global SMT and Production magazine, and Philip Stoten of Scoop TV. We discuss the state of the electronics assembly industry, the affects of COVID-19 on our industry, emerging technologies, and more.Mike Buetow may be reached here:https://www.circuitsassembly.com/ca/mbuetow@upmediagroup.comTrevor Galbraith may be reached here:https://globalsmt.net/global-smt-podcast/tgalbraith@globalsmt.netPhilip Stoten may be reached here:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjzfiQYhqvxKU3hwojy4onApstoten@me.com

Episode 52: A Conversation with Conformal Coating Expert Dr. Sean Clancy of HZODr. Sean Clancy and I discuss the various types of conformal coatings designed to protect circuit assemblies from moisture and other hazards. We discuss coating best-practices and current IOT-based products that are increasing the need for protecting circuit assemblies from harsh environments. Dr. Sean Clancy is the Director of Coating Technology at HZO, where he leads a group developing thin-film conformal coatings. Throughout his career, Sean has assisted hundreds of organizations with electronics manufacturing failure analysis, as well as developed functional coatings and materials for corrosion protection, charge storage, chemical sensing, light emission, and medical research. Sean holds an Adjunct Professor appointment at the University of Utah's Materials Science and Engineering Department and has previously provided consulting services in the STEAM fields (science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics).Sean earned his Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of Southern California, his B.S. in Chemistry from the University of North Florida, and his Certificate in Project Management from the University of Delaware.Dr. Clancy may be reached here:sclancy@hzo.com

Episode 51: A Conversation with X-Ray Expert and Entrepreneur Dr. Bill Cardoso Bill started his first company in Brazil at age 17 and sold it a few years later to move to the US to work for the Department of Energy’s Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory to do nuclear and high energy physics research. As the Department Head for Systems Engineering and after a 10-year long career at Fermilab, He moved from Chicago to southern California to start Creative Electron from his garage Bill was what could be described as an early achiever, earning his associates degree at age 13!Bill earned a BS in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul and MS and a PhD from the Illinois Institute of Technology, and, if that weren’t enough an MBA from The University of Chicago Booth School of BusinessBill may be reached here:bcardoso@creativeelectron.com