Environmentally friendly assembly of robust electronics without solder

Purpose – Tin‐lead solder has been the primary method for connecting electronic components to printed circuit boards since near the time of its inception. Over the last 60 years, solder has proven a viable assembly method over that time and there is a deep understanding of the technology won over years of practice. However, the European Union has banned the use of lead in electronic solder, based on the misguided assumption that lead in electronic solder represented a risk to human health. Aims to describe a new approach to manufacturing electronic assemblies without the use of solder.Design/methodology/approach – The paper discusses how the new era of lead‐free solder has resulted in a host of new problems for the electronics industry, many of which had not been experienced when elemental lead was included in the solder alloy.Findings – Electronics assembly technology literature is rife with articles and papers citing the problems or challenges of lead‐free assembly and proposing new or improved solution...