Understanding Thermal Profiling PCBs

1. Understanding Thermal Profiling PCBs Normally, in the production and assembly of electronic products, precise control of process parameters is essential. Usually this process is done by continuous monitoring and record process parameters which includes thermal profiling of PCBs. Basically, thermal profiling of PCB’s involves controlling the temperatures during the component soldering on the PCB. What is Thermal Profiling for Assembly? The common industry practice is to develop one of the three types of thermal profiles; it depends on PCB size and largely on guesstimates. Its consequences

2. include a high probability of cold solder joints and damaged components. These issues sometimes lead to inordinate extra re-work and assembly costs and OEM product delays. Also thermal profiling of PCB’s or temperature profiling is very important for any manufacturing process along with the heat treatment. Other than this it involves plotting the temperature at numerous points on a given product as it passes through thermal process. If you say typically, a thermal profile is a complex set of time-temperature data. That is why, the thermal profile is all about controlling the different dimensions like peak, soak, or slope, etc. that usually affect the process. It is an important part of efficient PCB design services that require advanced PCB manufacturing and assembly equipment. On the other side, a 100% accurate profile precisely follows the curves and specifications set forth the solder paste manufacturer. And also, certain main elements must be factored in to achieve thermal profile accuracy. We have mentioned them below: Number of Planes in PCB Component types Air pressure Applied Type of the material used in PCB PCB layers no PCB thickness PCB dimensions Significance of Thermal profiling PCB assembly The common process of components assembly on the PCB involves applying soft solder paste on the board and then precisely placing the components on the PCB using a CNC machine. If you want to firmly connect the components of the PCB, then you need to melt the solder paste slowly and then cool it down slowly. You can do this process by placing the PCB with components in paste on conveyor which passes through an oven. The oven that you are using will have different zone of temperature starting with the low temperature, slowly increasing to high

3. temperature where the solder paste melts. After that you bring down the temperature slowly to ambient temperature – this is where the solder solidifies and holds the components to the PCB. You have to control the temperature of the oven properly to avoid any thermals shock to the components. This whole procedure is known as thermal profiling. The basic principle of Thermal profiling Before we start defining the process of thermal profiling, we need to understand the basic principle behind thermal profiling. Basically it involves a simple question, “how hot is it and for howlong?” In such cases whenever a fabrication entails a heat-processing step, you would need a method that can ensure the product is

4. heated to a specified temperature for a specified period. Attaining the precise temperature and for the precise time should importantly affect the quality of the product. Aside from these key factors about the Thermal profiling, planning for an accurate thermal profile includes avoiding thermal shock by assuring gradual temperature increases or decreases between different Owen zones, carefully monitoring soak time and peak temperatures, and following the specifications provided by the solder paste manufacturer. However it is very important for one to understand Thermal profiling PCB because it is very beneficial for business and technology purposes. It is also sure that this will help you in something or the other in future. Read more: https://www.crimpcircuits.com/blog/understanding- thermal-profiling-pcbs/