Precision cleaning process of PCBA
Precision cleaning process of PCBA – Semiconductor Coating – Cheersonic
The COVID-19 pandemic has raised the importance of wearable medical devices and remote monitoring and diagnostic equipment to unprecedented heights. But these devices, as well as complex PCBAs (printed circuit board assemblies), must provide reliable and consistent performance, especially when they are used in life-sustaining equipment.
Cleaning is a key factor in maintaining consistent PCBA performance and should be considered when designing complex and multi-faceted electronic products. What cleaning processes should be used and how can cleaning standards be ensured?
Why reliability matters
The medical electronics market is expected to reach $6.3 billion in 2021 and reach $8.8 billion by 2026, growing at a CAGR of 6.9%. Some of the prominent factors driving the growth of the global medical electronics market include the growing adoption of IoT-based smart medical devices and the growing demand for portable medical devices and wearable electronics.
This demand for digital health products means an increasing demand for the production of small and complex electronic components. These devices must be small, lightweight, and portable for patient convenience. Designing miniaturized circuits with high internal complexity can be challenging for engineers as they must increase functionality, reduce component size and ensure they still operate reliably.
For example, if the PCBA inside a pacemaker fails, the results can be fatal. Therefore, electronic components must stand the test of time and function consistently.
Cleanliness is the key to reliability
Many factors should be considered when designing a PCBA. From properly positioning components on the board, to routing signal traces and determining the best flux/paste mix. Everything has to be planned before any prototyping or production begins. However, cleaning is a key aspect of PCBA design and is often overlooked during the initial planning process and not reviewed until the final stages of fabrication.
It is often easier to identify and resolve any cleaning issues prior to prototyping and production. This is especially true when manufacturing high-reliability PCBAs where cleanliness is critical. Electromedical devices must meet validation requirements, quality standards and regulations set by regulatory agencies. Effective cleaning is an important part of meeting these requirements.
The complex circuits used in medical devices require careful cleaning to remove any contamination. Particles, grease or inorganic contaminants from the manufacturing process should be removed. If PCBAs are not cleaned effectively, they are prone to a series of problems such as short circuits, delamination, electrochemical migration, dendrite growth, all of which can lead to PCBA failure.
How to tackle cleaning challenges
By properly cleaning PCBAs, many of the production and performance issues that manufacturers encounter can be reduced. Vapor degreasing is one way to meet the cleaning challenge.
Vapor degreasing provides a simple, repeatable process for effectively removing contaminants, whether general dirt and dust, or residues from difficult-to-remove lead-free no-clean fluxes and solder pastes.
The advanced, non-flammable, environmentally friendly cleaning fluids used in vapor degreasing systems are inherently bioburden-friendly and can significantly improve PCBA performance, reliability, and longevity. They are laboratory tested and analyzed to ensure high quality cleaning results, providing engineers with a cleaning method with relatively simple manufacturing validation.
The low viscosity and surface tension grades of the fluids used in vapor degreasers, combined with their volatility, make them very effective at cleaning complex parts. Crucially, steam degreasing completes the cleaning process by effectively drying the components. PCBA remains dry and stain-free, reducing the risk of bacterial growth and bioburden. This ensures that the finished product will meet the stringent regulatory and validation standards required in the manufacture of electronic medical devices.
Effective cleaning will ensure future-proof reliability
For electronic medical devices, performance is one of the most fundamental issues. Equipment must be designed and manufactured to perform consistently over its life cycle. However, this becomes increasingly challenging as PCBAs become smaller and more complex.
Vapor degreasing used with specially designed cleaning fluids is an effective solution to improve product quality and reliability. It supports the critical cleaning process, ensuring that contaminated PCBAs do not cause equipment failure. Therefore, it is important to consider the cleaning process during the design phase to ensure product reliability.
Article source丨MicroCare
The ultrasonic coating system can use advanced layering technology to precisely control the flow rate, coating speed and deposition amount. Low-speed spray forming defines an atomizing spray as a precise, controllable pattern, avoiding excessive spraying when producing very thin and uniform layers. It turns out that direct spraying using ultrasonic technology is a reliable and effective way to deposit photoresist on 3D microstructures, thereby reducing equipment failures caused by excessive metal exposure to etchant.
Cheersonic is the leading developer and manufacturer of ultrasonic coating systems for applying precise, thin film coatings to protect, strengthen or smooth surfaces on parts and components for the microelectronics/electronics, alternative energy, medical and industrial markets, including specialized glass applications in construction and automotive.
