H.A.L. (Hot Air Levelling unleaded / Containing of lead)

Hot Air Levelling (H.A.L.) is still a popular solder surface, which is to be found in practice very often. Indeed, H.A.L. can bump to his technical borders if very fine structures (fine pitch) must be coated. Further the mistake pictures, which are undesirable in the mounting, can appear process-partly. These are among other things

• Raised expenses by optical audit (tin bridges and tin pearls)
• Raised test expenses with the E-testing (pseudo mistakes)
• Failure ratio by thermal stress (by twisting and warping)
• Rejections by imprecise soldering
• Measlings/ delamination in the basis material
• High copper leaching in the holes (lead-free H.A.L.)

With smarttin^® you are able to avoid the typical H.A.L. – "trop off". By "trop out of vision" we understand the mistakes and also expenses that originate by the H.A.L – process. In the meantime, many well-known PCB manufacturers and PCB fabricators have rearranged their processes and take pleasure about a sunken complaint rate and an improved Yield.

The mistakes and problems mentioned above cannot appear process-related with smarttin^®. Contact us and we will inform you about the technical possibilities of smarttin^® as a H.A.L. – substitute.

ENIG (Electro less Nickel/Gold)

It is not necessary to use ENIG for reflow, wave soldering and press fit technology.

Gold is an excellent metal for the functional industry for example to be used as a contact material.

The disadvantages are:

• Extremely high price > 31€/gramm (October 2010)
• Gold can make the solder joints brittle
• For press fit technology not suitable
• Nickel deposition on solder mask and base material possible
• The missing pad problem
• The black pad problem