Bob Willis Book Reviews Again I have had the pleasure of reviewing some new publications hot off the press from some of the world's leading engineers. So without wasting any more time let's look at the latest offerings from Lau, Prasad and Joe Fjelstad. "Solder Joint Reliability of BGA, CSP, Flip Chip and Fine Pitch Assemblies" By John Lau and Yi-Hsin Pao Mc Graw Hill As many engineers introduce Ball Grid Array, Chip Scale Packages and Ultra Fine Pitch designs you must ask the question how reliable is my new product ? When surface mount was first introduced a considerable number of environmental test programs were undertaken but generally the time from design to manufacture is today too short. Companies must often rely on published data for product confidence rather than undertaking their own test programs. This new publication provides specific test programs, test data and recommendations on each technology and its possible shortcomings. I personally would have liked to have seen even more case studies and examples of joint failures in each of the chapters but I guess there is a limit. Although some of the material has appeared in other John Lau books it is still a very good and well co-ordinated handbook which I have personally enjoyed reading. I have found the information valuable to my understanding of finite element analysis and its role in understanding or helping to predict the log time reliability of solder joints. The mathematics may leave many engineers in the cold like myself, but the authors have introduced each part of the prediction and failure analysis cycle logically, which makes it easier to understand. The book is broken down into distinct sections covering Flip Chip, Chip Scale Packages, Ball Grid Array and Ultra Fine Pitch parts. As always I look forward to reading any new Lau book and this is no expectation. I look forward to seeing him again in the USA. --------------------------------------------------------------------- "Surface Mount Technology Principles & Practice" 2nd Edition By Ray Prasad, VNR I reviewed the first edition of this book way back in 1989 when it was one of only two books available on surface mount technology. The alternative title was "Handbook of SMT " written by Steve Hinch who is not as active on the lecture circuit as Ray. The new edition still has much of the practical information on surface mount assembly which can be put directly into practice. This is particularly important today when engineers do not seem to have time to experiment as we did in the early years of the technology. The second edition features information on fine pitch and Ball Grid Array. Ray is a most interesting speaker and there is a lot to be learned from his surface mount handbook which must be one of the highest selling SMT manuals in the world. --------------------------------------------------------------------- One of the books I am really looking forward to reviewing is the second edition of the Microelectronics Packaging Handbook produced by Rao Tummala. I reviewed the original manual back in 1989 and was very impressed with the 1200 pages , now it spans three volumes of text. So to my good friends at Chapman & Hall in the UK and Thompson Publishing in the USA please hurry up an send me a copy, please. --------------------------------------------------------------------- "Engineer's Guide to Flexible Circuit Technology" By Joe Fjelstad, Electrochemical Publications I reviewed Joe's flexible guide last year when he had printed and published the text himself to cater for his many training workshops. Now the manual has been rewritten and published via Electrochemical Publications, those nice people on the Isle of Man. Joe has spent a long tine focusing on updating the material and even longer using Corel Draw to good effect on the illustrations, which are very good. The whole book is much better than the last issue although the last issue was informative. It is now a must for the flexible engineer, designers and fabricators alike. The only weak area is the assembly section which does discuss jigging for assembly in some detail. It could have benefited from more on the specific issues or process problems associated with flexibles, but as an assembly engineer that is bound to be my comment. The basic materials are covered in the text along with the needs of the design engineer for both small and volume applications. A lot has changed in the flexible market including demand for the products. With so many new applications particularly in the consumer market things look good for the industry. This is yet another fine piece of work from the EC team on the Isle of Man, keep it up guys you know its worth the effort. Hope these are of interest to you. Bob Willis Process Engineering Consultant Electronic Presentation Services 2 Fourth Avenue, Chelmsford, Essex CM1 4HA. England. Tel: (44) 01245 351502 Fax: (44) 01245 496123 Email:[log in to unmask] Home Page: http://www.bobwillis.co.uk Home Page: http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/bwillis Please use the New Email and Web Site addresses as we are changing "THE SOLUTION PROVIDER FOR YOUR MANUFACTURING PROBLEMS" *************************************************************************** * TechNet mail list is provided as a service by IPC using SmartList v3.05 * *************************************************************************** * To subscribe/unsubscribe send a message <to: [log in to unmask]> * * with <subject: subscribe/unsubscribe> and no text in the body. * *************************************************************************** * If you are having a problem with the IPC TechNet forum please contact * * Dmitriy Sklyar at 847-509-9700 ext. 311 or email at [log in to unmask] * ***************************************************************************