Success Story Categories

• Failure Analysis

  Failure Analysis of Electrical Components

• PCB Qualification

• PCB Quality Control

• Printed Circuit Board Analysis

  PCB also known as PWB (printed wiring boards). These boards are inspected and classified to IPC standards. A class 3 is the highest standard and most have limitations on the acceptable quality of manufacturing defects.

• IC Failure Analysis (Integrated Circuit)

• Rectifier Failure Analysis

  A rectifier is a non-linear component that converts ac to dc. Rectifiers typically use non-linear devices such as diodes of thyristors. These devices permit the flow of current in only one direction. 3 phase ac drives typically use a 6 pulse bridge A rectifier is a non-linear component that converts ac to dc. Rectifiers typically use non-linear devices such as diodes of thyristors. These devices permit the flow of current in only one direction. 3 phase ac drives typically use a 6 pulse bridge rectifier with thyristors.

  Both dc and ac drives need a rectifier. In a dc drive, the rectifier converts ac to dc for the motor. In the ac drive, the rectifier converts the ac to dc for the inverters that eventually produce the variable frequency, variable voltage ac for the motor. The rectifier takes 3 phase sinusoidal ac and chops out the positive sections for each phase to produce dc. The dc voltage has triangular shaped sections. The dc current has sine shaped portions. The dc voltage is 1.35 times the RMS ac voltage. To conserve power in and out, the dc current is 0.816 times the ac line current.

• Triac Failure Analysis

  SCRs are unidirectional (one-way) current devices, making them useful for controlling DC only. If two SCRs are joined in back-to-back parallel fashion just like two Shockley diodes were joined together to form a DIAC, we have a new device known as the TRIAC. The TRIAC is a three terminal semiconductor device for controlling current. It is effectively a development of the SCR or thyristor, but unlike the thyristor which is only able to conduct in one direction, the TRIAC is a bidirectional device.

• Design

• MOSFETs

• PCB FA

• Success Stories

• Analytical Services

  Gideon Analytical provides a variety of techniques which allow us to be the most advanced failure analysis house with electrical components, printed circuit boards, materials, quality control, vendor inspection, and understanding component processes. We design, debug and review electrical schematics, in addition to matching the failure with a design, application, process, manufacturing, or environmental issue. We have over 35 years experience in this area.

• Application Issue

• Component Failure Analysis

  Through component failure analysis and failure analysis performed on other levels, we can identify the problem area. Was the failure caused by an application problem? A design problem? A process problem? A mechanical problem? Materials incompatibility? A quality issue associated with component manufacturing? Or is the failure an end of life wear out mechanism? These are questions we answer through failure analysis and component failure analysis.

  Gideon Labs performs failure analysis on discrete electrical components: capacitors (film, tantalum, electrolytic, ceramic, disc, polarized, ac, dc, etc.), relays (solid state, mechanical, electromechanical, mercury, current, blind, track) PWB (contamination, ions, IPC 650, cross sections, tin migration, PTH opens), transformers (power, isolation, current, voltage, signal, flyback, oil, pulse, step up and down, high and low voltage, high frequency), resistors, fans, cable, connectors, and semiconductors (diodes, FETs, PWMs, oscillators, thyristers, SCRs, rectifiers, interconnect and packaging problems, etc). The component list is unduly long to mention all the components we have analyzed.

• Contamination Analysis

• FTIR

• Metallurgy

• Optical Coupler Failure Analysis

  Devices of the Photo Coupler family include Photo Transistor, Photo Darlington Transistor, Photo Triac and OPIC.

• Radiography

• Relay Failure Analysis

  Relay is an electromagnetic device which is used to isolate two circuits electrically and connect them magnetically. They are very useful devices and allow one circuit to switch another one while they are completely separate. They are often used to interface an electronic circuit (working at a low voltage) to an electrical circuit which works at very high voltage.

• Resistor Failure Analysis

  

  Table

  Number	Name	Material
  1	Lead	Gold plated nickel
  2	End Fillet	Copper-silver alloy
  3	End Cap	Nickel-iron alloy
  4	Core	Ceramic or glass
  5	Metal or Carbon	Film Nickel-chromium alloy
  6	Envelope	Ceramic or glass
  7	End Disk	Nickel-iron alloy
  8	Spiral	Laser cut exposing core
  9	Envelope gas	Dry gas-air mixture
  10	Varnish Coating	High Temp Coating

• SEM-EDS

  Stories of success where Gideon Labs used Scanning Electron Microscopy Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy to analyze failures.

• Tantalum Capacitor Failure Analysis

  A tantalum capacitor is a type of electrolytic capacitor. It is constructed of a pellet of tantalum metal as anode, covered by an insulating oxide layer that forms the dielectric (manganese dioxide), surrounded by conductive material as a cathode (carbon with a silver epoxy interface). Tantalum electrolytic capacitors exploit the tendency of tantalum to form a non-conductive protective oxide surface layer. A tantalum capacitor consists of tantalum powder pressed into a pellet shape as one “plate” of the capacitor, with the oxide as a dielectric, and an electrolytic solution or conductive solid as the other “plate”. The dielectric layer thus can be very thin. This gives tantalum capacitors an advantage over electrolytic capacitors in having a high capacitance per unit volume and weight.

• Voltage Regulator Failure Analysis

  Voltage Regulator converts varying input voltage and produces a constant regulated output voltage. They are available in a variety of outputs. It typically is connected in series with power supply filter and the circuits to which the power is is supplied.

• Diode Failure Analysis

  A diode allows electricity to flow in one direction only and blocks the flow in the opposite direction. They may be regarded as one-way valves and they are used in various circuits, usually as a form of protection. There are different types of diode but their basic functions are the same. These are noted below along with examples of diodes in use.

• MLCC Failure Analysis

  MLCC stands for Multilayer Ceramic Capacitors. Ceramic capacitors are vulnerable to cracking because of PCB flexing. They also have a coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) difference from the PCB of almost 2. They are also one of the smallest discrete components on the PCB used over overwhelmingly in decoupling application.

• Semiconductor Failure Analysis

  ICs with different functions in the electronic industry.

• Sensor Failure Analysis

• Transformer Analysis

• Electrolytic Capacitor Failures

  An aluminum electrolytic capacitor consists of cathode aluminum foil, capacitor paper (electrolytic paper), electrolyte, and an aluminum oxide layer, which acts as the dielectric, formed on the anode foil surface. These type of capacitors have high voltage and high capacitance.

• Film Capacitor Failure Analysis

  Film capacitors (polymer film) are generically called “film caps” as well as power film capacitors which are electrical capacitors with an insulating plastic film as the dielectric, sometimes combined with paper as carrier of the electrodes. The dielectric films, depending on the desired dielectric strength, are drawn in a special process to an extremely thin thickness, and are then provided with electrodes. The electrodes of film capacitors may be metallized aluminum or zinc applied directly to the surface of the plastic film, or a separate metallic foil overlying the film. Two of these conductive layers are wound into a cylinder shaped winding, usually flattened to reduce mounting space requirements on a printed circuit board, or layered as multiple single layers stacked together, to form a capacitor body.

• Contamination Analysis on PCB

• Failure Analysis of Transistors

  Transistors are a type of switch. They are used in a variety of circuits. They are integral part of all electronics. There are two main types; NPN and PNP. Most circuits tend to use NPN. There are hundreds of transistors which work at different voltages but all of them fall into these two categories.

• FET Failure Analysis

  A field-effect transistor (FET) is a type of transistor commonly used for weak-signal amplification (for example, for amplifying wireless signals). It is also a semiconductor device that outputs current in proportion to its input voltage. FETs use a small amount of control current to regulate a larger output current. The device can amplify analog or digital signals. It can also switch DC or function as an oscillator.

• Inorganic Analysis

• Li-Ion Batteries

• Moisture Ingress Testing

• PWM Failure Analysis

  Pulse-width modulation (PWM), or pulse-duration modulation (PDM), is a commonly used technique for controlling power to inertial [ambiguous] electrical devices, made practical by modern electronic power switches. The average value of voltage (and current) fed to the load is controlled by turning the switch between supply and load on and off at a fast pace. The longer the switch is on compared to the off periods, the higher the power supplied to the load is.

• Silicon Controlled Rectifier

• Cross-Sections of Components on PCBs

• Flex Circuits

• Gate Drivers

• IGBT Failure Analysis

  The Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor (IGBT) is a minority-carrier device with high input impedance and large bipolar current-carrying capability. Many designers view IGBT as a device with MOS input characteristics and bipolar output characteristic that is a voltage-controlled bipolar device. To make use of the advantages of both Power MOSFET and BJT, the IGBT has been introduced. It’s a functional integration of Power MOSFET and BJT devices in monolithic form.

• Ion Chromatograph Analysis

• XRF

• Power Supply Failures

• BGA Failure

• Capacitor Failure Analysis

  There are a wide variety of passive type capacitors made. This category will illustrate and display some failures we have had in the past.

• Transient Voltage Suppressor Failure Analysis

  Transient Voltage Surge Suppressors protect against transient voltage spikes that normally occur in less than one nanosecond (.000000001 second). The most common and inexpensive utilize one or more MOVs (Metal-Oxide Varistor). The effect of the MOV is to clamp the maximum voltage value at a specified level above the peak of the rated RMS voltage. The clamping voltage will increase in a non-linear fashion with an increase in peak surge amperes.

• Organic Analysis

  Instruments used in the analysis of organic materials.

• Pi Filter Failure Analysis

• Potentiometer Failure Analysis

  A potentiometer is a manually adjustable electrical resistor that uses three terminals. In many electrical devices, potentiometers are what establish the levels of output. For example, in a loudspeaker, a potentiometer is used to adjust the volume. In a television set, computer monitor or light dimmer, it can be used to control the brightness of the screen or light bulb.

• RoHS Components

• Failure Analysis of Op-Amp

  An operational amplifier (op-amp) is a DC-coupled high-gain electronic voltage amplifier with a differential input and a single-ended output. An op-amp produces an output voltage that is typically hundreds of thousands of times larger than the voltage difference between its input terminals.

• Passivation Integrity Test

• Laser Failures

• Oscillator Failure Analysis

• Connector Failure Analysis

• IC Failure Analysis (Integrated Circuit"

• Stranded Wire Failure Analysis

• Fires

  Examination of the cause of fires on PCBs

• Phototransistor Failure Analysis

  Phototransistors amplify the current generated by the light striking the active area. Compared to photodiodes, a large output current can be obtained, even from a small active area.

• Power Amplifier Failure Analysis

  An Amplifier receives a signal from some pickup transducer or other input source and provides a larger version of the signal to some output device or to another amplifier stage. An input transducer signal is generally small (a few millivolts from a cassette or CD input or a few microvolts from an antenna) and needs to be amplified sufficiently to operate an output device (speaker or other powerhandling device).

• IC Failure Analysis (Integrated Circuit)

  An integrated circuit (IC) is an electronic circuit on one small chip or die of semiconductor material, normally silicon. The circuit is very compact and can have several billion transistors and other electronic components on the silicon die. The trace line width of each conductor gets smaller with advancing technology.