Speaker: Dr. Craig Hillman, CEO, DfR Solutions
Sponsors: SCV Reliability Chapter, with CPMT Chapter

Meeting Date: Thursday, February 9, 2017
Time: Check-in and food at 6:00 PM; Presentation at 6:30 PM
Cost: none (Food sponsored by ICE Labs, ISO 9001 & 17025 Reliability Test Lab)

Location: Qualcomm, Inc., 3165 Kifer Road, Santa Clara
Summary: As always, manufacturing and performance take the forefront in regards to semiconductor packaging. The introduction of copper pillars has helped increase the number of I/Os and current density. The increasing use of ELK and ULK, especially at higher metal layers, has allowed for lower RC constants and better performance. However, both of these changes can come at a cost. A number of companies are reporting challenges with these new structures, especially at 28nm and 16nm process nodes. This presentation will review the current status of copper pillar and ELK, the potential risks both introduce into assembly and long-term reliability, and avenues to evaluate and mitigate any life-limiting mechanisms.

Bio: Dr. Craig Hillman is the Chief Executive Officer of DfR Solutions. DfR Solutions provides engineering services and tools that allow the electronic supply chain to meet customer expectations in regards to quality, reliability, and durability. Over the past 12 years, Dr. Hillman has put together an unrivaled group of subject matter experts in a number of different fields, including semiconductors, batteries, electronic design and assembly, and systems engineering, and has overseen the release of the first Automated Design Analysis software to the EDA/CAE marketplace. DfR Solutions is now the largest organization of its kind in the world and has offices across North America and Europe. Dr. Hillman’s specific expertise is in the development and incorporation of best-in-class product development processes that optimize existing resources and result in strong customer satisfaction. Dr. Hillman holds two patents, has over 100 publications, has won a number of SBIR contracts, has been a guest columnist for Global SMT & Packaging, has been a course instructor at almost all the major electronic conferences (DesignCon, SemiCon, Embedded, IPC, etc.), was identified by the US DoD as a subject matter expert in Pb-free technology, has been an expert witness on over 20 court cases and has worked on a wide variety of quality and reliability issues with over 1000 companies and organizations.