Pad cratering

Pad cratering is a mechanically induced fracture in the resin between copper foil and outermost layer of
fiberglass of a printed circuit board (PCB). It may be within the resin or at the resin to fiberglass interface.

The pad remains connected to the component (usually a Ball Grid Array, BGA) and leaves a "crater" on the
surface of the printed circuit board.

Contents
Overview
Testing
Detection and Failure Analysis
Mitigation
Pad Cratering Images
External links
References

Overview
Pad cratering most often occurs during dynamic mechanical events such as mechanical shock or board
flexure due to In-circuit test (ICT), board depaneling, or connector insertion.[1] However, pad cratering has
also been known to occur during thermal shock or even thermal cycling. Susceptibility to pad cratering can
be impacted by several factors such as: PCB thickness, PCB laminate material properties, component size
and stiffness, component location, and solder alloy selection among other factors.[2][3][4]

Testing
IPC-9708 provides three test methods to characterize the pad cratering of a component and PCBA: pin pull,
ball pull, and ball shear testing.[5] In the pin pull test a pin is soldered to pads and pulled until fracture. It is a
useful test for all pad geometries and is sensitive to board design and materials. The ball pull test is
specifically design for BGA components and has a large sensitivity to the solder alloy and joint formation.
The ball shear test is also specified for BGA components and involves shearing the solder balls of the BGA.
This test is typically the most convenient but is less sensitive to the design and material as compared to the
ball pull test.[6] Although IPC-9708 specifies procedures for each test type, the challenge is that no standard
pass/fail criteria is defined. This is viewed as application-specific and must be defined by the user based on
their design, environment, and reliability requirements.

Another applicable test method is IPC/JEDEC-9702, which is a monotonic bend test method used to
characterize board level interconnects.[7] This can be relevant for pad cratering resulting from board flexure,
however this test method is broader and does not specifically focus on pad cratering failure modes.
Board level reliability testing is a common approach to assessing product reliability. Performing temperature
cycling, mechanical drop/shock, and vibration testing is a good way to evaluate pad cratering. However,
similar to IPC/JEDEC-9702, this can be cost and time intensive and does not specifically focus on pad
cratering failure modes.[8]

Detection and Failure Analysis

Pad cratering can be difficult to detect during functional testing. This is especially the case with small or
partial cracking that can escape testing and cause latent field failures.[9] Even if a component failure is
identified, diagnosing the failure mode as pad cratering can be difficult. Conventional nondestructive testing
and failure analysis techniques such as visual inspection and X-Ray microscopy may not detect the issue.
Electrical characterization is an example of a nondestructive technique that can be useful, however this may
not detect an anomaly if there is only partial cracking.

Typically, pad cratering is detected or confirmed via destructive testing and failure analysis such as dye and
pry, acoustic emissions[10], cross sectioning, and Scanning Electron Microscopy.

Mitigation
There are several mitigation techniques that can used to reduce the risk of pad cratering. The appropriate
method(s) is often driven by design and resource constraints.

Limiting Board Flexure: If cratering is due to mechanical overstress then limiting board flexure is typically
the best mitigation technique. [1][9][4]

Simulation: Modeling and simulation can help proactively avoid pad cratering failures.[1][6] Relevant
examples include ICT failures or products with potential for large shock events (i.e. portable electronics).
Finite Element Analysis can be done using a physics of failure approach to determine risk of overstress and
pad cratering. This proactive approach can rapidly evaluate multiple designs early on, potentially avoiding
expensive design changes or warranty costs later on.

Underfill, Edge Bonding, and Corner Staking: Epoxies and underfill materials can be added to provide
mechanical support and reduce board and solder strain during flexing. This is more common in cases where
the component selection and PCBA design are fixed. There are differences between each technique which
makes proper understanding of the environment and application important.[4]

Solder Alloy: Solder alloy selection can impact susceptibility to pad cratering. Typically, pad cratering is
considered a high strain rate event with minimal creep, however there is still potential for plasticity in the
solder. More compliant solders or those with lower yield points will reduce pad cratering potential by
providing additional load sharing.

Board Thickness and Laminate Material: Board thickness and laminate material properties such as
Young’s modulus and Coefficient of Thermal Expansion (CTE) will impact susceptibility to pad cratering.

Board Redesign: If pad cratering persists then a redesign may be required. This could include changing
component location or adjusting between solder mask defined (SMD) and non-solder mask defined (NSMD)
pads.

Pad Cratering Images

 BGA pad and solder Magnified view of Pad crater left on
ball exhibiting pad cross section of printed circuit board
cratering. BGA pad and solder after copper pad
ball. Dielectric has from a BGA
cracked and the pad connection has
has started to lift, been pulled away.
eventually creating
pad cratering.

External links
Additional information on pad cratering in printed circuit boards can be found in the following links:

http://www.smtnet.com/Forums/index.cfm?fuseaction=view_thread&Thread_ID=13953
http://www.pcb007.com/pages/zone.cgi?a=51651&_pf_=1
http://www.ipc.org/de/ContentPage.aspx?pageid=IPC-ehrt-Best-Papers-an-der-IPC-APEX-
EXPO
http://integral-hdi.com Integral Technology
http://integral-hdi.com/news/2010/11/next-generation-electronic-materials- Integral Technology
pad cratering blog.

References
1. http://www.dfrsolutions.com/hubfs/Resources/services/Preventing-Pad-Cratering-During-ICT-
Using-Sherlock.pdf?hsCtaTracking=95bec082-e4c1-40d3-a379-dfe6d7a5727a%7Ce96e5f51-
abc5-4c7a-9a2e-28a78cb24e8e
2. https://www.smtnet.com/library/files/upload/pad-cratering.pdf, PAD CRATERING: THE
INVISIBLE THREAT TO THE ELECTRONICS INDUSTRY, Presented by Jim Griffin, OEM
Sales & Marketing Manage, Integral Technology
3. http://www.circuitinsight.com/pdf/test_method_pad_cratering_ipc.pdf, M. Ahmad, J.
Burlingame, and C. Guirguis, Validated Test Method to Characterize and Quantify Pad
Cratering Under BGA Pads on Printed Circuit Boards, Apex 2008.
4. https://www.smta.org/chapters/files/uppermidwest_padcratering.pdf
5. IPC IPC-9708, Test Methods for Characterization of PCB Pad Cratering
6. D. Xie, D. Shangguan and H. Kroener, “Pad Cratering Evaluation of PCB”, APEX 2010, Las
Vegas, NA.
7. IPC/JEDEC-9702: Monotonic Bend Characterization of Board-Level Interconnects
8. Pad Cratering: Assessing Long Term Reliability Risks, Denis Barbini, Ph.D., AREA
Consortium, http://www.meptec.org/Resources/23%20-%20Universal%20Instruments.pdf
 9. http://www.dfrsolutions.com/hubfs/Webinar%20Slides%20for%20YouTube/Avoiding-Pad-
Cratering-and-Cracked-Capacitor-Webinar.pdf
10. A New Approach for Early Detection of PCB Pad Cratering Failures, Anurag Bansal,
Gnyaneshwar Ramakrishna and Kuo-Chuan Liu, Cisco Systems, Inc., San Jose, CA,
https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/4008/a780824029d65803614ff2badb23e31929de.pdf?
_ga=2.178646691.640690740.1508535388-688246373.1508535388

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