Evaluating solder paste behaviours through rheological test methods and their correlation to the printing performance

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to study the rheological behaviours of lead‐free solder pastes used for flip‐chip assembly applications and to correlate rheological behaviours with the printing performance.Design/methodology/approachA range of rheological characterization techniques including viscosity, yield stress, oscillatory and creep‐recovery tests were carried out to investigate the rheological properties and behaviours of four different solder paste formulations based on no‐clean flux composition, with different alloy composition, metal content and particle size. A series of printing tests were also conducted to correlate printing performance.FindingsThe results show that in the viscosity test, all solder pastes exhibited a shear thinning behaviour in nature with different highest maximum viscosity. The yield stress test has been used to study the effect of temperature on the flow behaviour of solder pastes. A decrease in yield stress value with temperature was observed. The results from the oscillatory test were used to study the solid‐ and liquid‐like behaviours of solder pastes. Creep‐recovery testing showed that the solder paste with smaller particle size exhibited less recovery.Research limitations/implicationsMore extensive research is needed to simulate the paste‐roll, aperture‐filling and aperture‐emptying stages of the stencil printing process using rheological test methods.Practical implicationsImplementation of these rheological characterization procedures in product development, process optimization and quality control can contribute significantly to reducing defects in the assembly of flip‐chip devices and subsequently increasing the production yield.Originality/valueThe paper shows how the viscosity, yield stress, oscillatory and creep‐recovery test methods can be successfully used to characterize the flow behaviour of solder pastes and also to predict their performance during the stencil printing process.