Mechanical Reliability of Electronic Devices

Stress simulation techniques in semiconductor fabricating processes and strength evaluation techniques for electronic devices and equipment are described. Semiconductor fabricating process simulators are developed for stress analysis of thermal oxidation and film deposition processes. Strengths of plastic encapsulants, silicon chips, bonding wires and adhesive interfaces in IC plastic packages are evaluated using fracture mechanics and other techniques. Thermal fatigue strength of solder joints is evaluated using fatigue test data of solder specimens and simplified modeling of IC packages.