Board Level Failure Mechanisms and Analysis in Hand-held Electronic Products

Mobile communication and computing with hand-held electronic products have seen exponential growth in the past few years. Both customer expectations and end use environment are very different in comparison to desktop, server or office based electronic products. The generic failure analysis processes for such products and board level failure mechanisms related to aggressive mechanical and electrochemical environments are presented to highlight the unique mechanisms operative in hand-held electronic products. Specifically, mechanical drop and twist-related failures are discussed along with corrosion and electrochemical migration phenomena.