Environmental Damage to Electronic Products

The sources of integrated circuit damage considered up to this point originated within the materials and substances used in manufacturing. But now we confront degradation and damage to electronic products from outside sources such as humid atmospheres, airborne contaminant particles, and ionizing radiation. Even in the very early years of microelectronics it was recognized that moisture and atmospheric particulates, often ionic in nature, posed serious reliability problems in devices, components, and packages. Thin-film metallizations and fine wires composed of corrodible metals (e.g., Al, Ag) and insulation (plastic, ceramics) prone to moisture absorption resulted in degradation products that were uncomfortably large in size compared to the small feature dimensions involved. Today, humidity-induced corrosion of exposed or unprotected metals and water pickup, as well as release from polymers, are among the major failure mechanisms in electronic products.