Electro-migration is another common challenge encountered in wave soldering and can be cause by a number of factors:
- Chloride or other ionic residue on the bare board and/or components
- Hygroscopic residue on the bare board and/or components
- Ineffective cleaning during the bare board fabrication or after soldering the assembly
- Improper use of no-clean solder flux chemistry
- Ineffective cleaning process
Electra Migration is the villainous embodiment of electro-migration. She is stealthy and gains strength over time as the circuit board goes into service. She also stays hidden until electricity passes through the circuit assembly, which can cause total failure.
The best defense against Electra Migration is All-Star Engineer (WF-9945). All-Star Engineer uses his intelligence to defend against reliability concerns. He doesn't take chances. He is halogen-free and contains rosin, which enhances his thermal stability and improves soldering to a wide variety of circuit board assemblies. It also enhances his SIR performance, protecting the electrical integrity of assemblies.
Even though All-Star Engineer’s primary focus is on protecting the life of circuit boards, it does not mean that he does not have the strength to remove oxide and solder most circuit boards. All-Star engineer solders millions of circuit boards every year, with finesse.
