A printed circuit board includes a body and a belly pad seated within with the body. The belly pad is electrically separated into a first pad and a second pad. The first pad and the second pad are arranged to be electrically connected to one another by an interconnect electrically connecting the belly pad to a conductive plane of an electrical component, thereby allowing continuity testing across an interface between the first pad and the interconnect. Methods of testing continuity in electrical assemblies are also disclosed.

A method for repairing a printed circuit board (PCB) including the steps of presenting a PCB having an initial coating on a surface thereof, removing the initial coating from the surface of the PCB at least in an area in need of repair, and recoating at least the area of the PCB in need of repair by way of atomic layer deposition.

A circuit board assembly inspection method includes the following steps: measuring a geometrical characteristic value of a solder layer before soldering an electronic component to a circuit board and comparing the geometric characteristic value with a predetermined value and defining the grad of the solder layer according to a comparing result of the comparing step and performing a defective product process to the circuit board having an extremely bad solder layer, measuring a quality characteristic value of a solder joint layer after soldering the electronic component to the circuit board and comparing the quality characteristic value with a predetermined quality parameter value and then defining the grade of the solder joint layer according to a comparing result of the comparing step, manually inspecting the circuit board assembly having both an medium-grade solder layer a the poor solder joint layer.

A method for repairing a through-hole includes inserting a repair coil, comprising a tightly-wound repair strip, into a through-hole and inserting a heating element into the repair coil. Passing an electrical current through the heating element liquefies a bonding material disposed on the repair coil and the repair coil expands within the through-hole. Subsequently solidifying the bonding material bonds the repair coil to the through-hole. A repair assembly comprises a repair coil inserted into a through-hole and a heating element inserted into the repair coil. The repair coil comprises a tightly-wound repair strip. The heating element comprises a segment of a heating wire enclosed within an insulating material. Passing an electric current through the segment of the heating wire liquefies bonding material disposed on the repair coil and the repair coil expands within the through-hole. The liquified bonding material solidifies to bond the repair coil to the through-hole.

Methods, systems, and devices for buried lines and related fabrication techniques are described. An electronic device (e.g., an integrated circuit) may include multiple buried lines at multiple layers of a stack. For example, a first layer of the stack may include multiple buried lines formed based on a pattern of vias formed at an upper layer of the stack. The pattern of vias may be formed in a wide variety of spatial configurations, and may allow for conductive material to be deposited at a buried target layer. In some cases, buried lines may be formed at multiple layers of the stack concurrently.

Shape-memory alloy connectors and methods are provided for enhancing conductivity of a plated through-hole of a circuit board. A shape-memory alloy connector, including a shape-memory alloy material in deformed shape, is inserted into the plated through-hole of the circuit board. The shape-memory alloy connector is expanded within the plated through-hole by heating the shape-memory alloy material to, at least in part, transition the shape-memory alloy material towards a pre-deformed shape of the material. The transitioning of the shape-memory alloy material towards the pre-deformed shape expands the shape-memory alloy connector outward, at least in part, against plating of the plated through-hole to enhance contact of the shape-memory alloy connector with the plating of the plated through-hole.

Embodiments include interposers for use in high speed applications. In an embodiment, the interposer comprises an interposer substrate, and an array of pads on a first surface of the interposer substrate. In an embodiment, a plurality of vias pass through the interposer substrate, where each via is electrically coupled to one of the pads in the array of pads. In an embodiment a plurality of heating elements are embedded in the interposer substrate. In an embodiment a first cable is over the first surface interposer substrate. In an embodiment, the first cable comprises an array of conductive lines along the first cable, where conductive lines proximate to a first end of the cable are electrically coupled to pads in the array of pads.

An intelligent soldering handpiece comprising a housing; a solder tip; a heater for heating the solder tip; a processor for receiving an image of a solder joint being soldered by the intelligent soldering handpiece, determining solder joint information, and associating the image of the solder joint with the determined solder joint information to distinguish the determined solder joint information for each respective joint.

A method for material deposition includes providing a transparent donor substrate (56, 60) having opposing first and second surfaces and multiple donor films (62, 64) including different, respective materials on the second surface. The donor substrate is positioned in proximity to an acceptor substrate (41), with the second surface facing toward the acceptor substrate. Pulses of laser radiation are directed to pass through the first surface of the donor substrate and impinge on the donor films so as to induce ejection of molten droplets containing a bulk mixture of the different materials from the donor films onto the acceptor substrate.

Tools and methods are provided for shaping contact tab interconnects at a circuit card edge. The tool includes a base member with a slot to receive a circuit card edge. The slot is sized such that the edge of the circuit card is slidable lengthwise within the slot. The tool further includes shaping dowels disposed within the base member, including at least two shaping dowels that define a set of adjacent shaping dowels extending at an angle relative to each other. The set of adjacent shaping dowels are exposed, at least in part, within the slot. In operation, with lengthwise sliding of the edge of the circuit card within the slot, the edge of the circuit card contacts and slides across the set of adjacent shaping dowels to round off, at least in part, ends of the contact tab interconnects at the edge of the circuit card.