Soldering device and a method for producing a solder connection of components using adhesive material for temporary connection of the components

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for producing a solder connection between a plurality of components (12A, 12B) in a process chamber (74) sealed off from its surroundings by heating and melting solder material (16) which is arranged between the components (12A, 12B) to be connected. It is proposed that the components (12A, 12B) to be connected are provisionally connected with a bonding material (18) to form a solder group (10) in which the components (12A, 12B) are fixed relative to one another in a joining position.

Claims

1. A method for producing a solder connection between a plurality of components in a sealed process chamber, the method comprising, in order: heating a solder group to an intermediate temperature, the solder group comprising solder material between the plurality of components and a bonding material, wherein the intermediate temperature is lower than a melting temperature of the solder material at atmospheric pressure; reducing, in a stepwise manner, a pressure in the process chamber, the pressure being initially reduced above an evaporation pressure of the bonding material at the intermediate temperature so the bonding material does not evaporate; introducing a cleaning agent into the process chamber to clean the solder group, the cleaning agent comprising methanoic acid, hydrogen, or a plasma, wherein a provisional connection by the bonding material between the plurality of components remains; reducing the pressure in the process chamber below the evaporation pressure of the bonding material at the intermediate temperature such that the bonding material evaporates.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the bonding material is selected such that the bonding material evaporates during production of a solder connection.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein, when the evaporation pressure is lower than the atmospheric pressure, an evaporation temperature of the bonding material is lower than the melting temperature of the solder material.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising maintaining the intermediate temperature while reducing the pressure in the process chamber below the evaporation pressure of the bonding material at a predetermined temperature value or within a predetermined temperature range at least until evaporation of the bonding material is complete.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the bonding material is arranged in a region comprising one or more of an edge, a corner, and a center of the plurality of components or the solder material.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the solder material melts after the bonding material evaporates.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the bonding material is liquid or pasty and comprises a terpene alcohol.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the terpene alcohol is isobornyl cyclohexanol.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein: the process chamber comprises a soldering apparatus comprising: a base plate, a pressure plate, and a stop apparatus, the base plate and the pressure plate are adjustable relative to one another with regards to spacing between the base plate and the pressure plate for exerting a pressure force on the solder group received between the base plate and the pressure plate, and the stop apparatus limits a spacing between the base plate and the pressure plate to a minimum spacing such that, once the solder material in the solder group has melted, the solder group has a predetermined thickness.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the stop apparatus is arranged on the base plate or the pressure plate.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the stop apparatus is adjustable such that the minimum spacing can be set.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the stop apparatus comprises a plurality of length-adjustable stop elements.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein each of the plurality of length-adjustable stop elements comprises an adjusting device that interacts with a complementary adjusting device provided on the base plate or the pressure plate.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the plurality of length-adjustable stop elements are arranged such that, upon reaching the minimum spacing, the plurality of length-adjustable stop elements bear a respective free end against a component of the solder group, against a base frame carrying one of the components, or against the base plate.

15. The method of claim 9, wherein at least one of the base plate and the pressure plate is constructed of a material that can be heated or cooled.

16. The method of claim 9, wherein the soldering apparatus comprises a carrier unit on which the pressure plate is directly or indirectly spring-supported or spring-mounted.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein a spring force exerted by the pressure plate on the solder group is adjustable.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the base plate is adjustable relative to the carrier unit.

19. The method of claim 9, wherein a side of the pressure plate associated with the base plate is planar or has at least one projecting step that is in contact with the solder group.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the at least one projecting step is planar.

Description

DRAWINGS

(1) Further advantageous embodiments of the invention are revealed by the description and the drawings.

(2) The invention is described below on the basis of exemplary embodiments and with reference to the drawings, in which:

(3) FIGS. 1 & 2 show schematic diagrams of solder groups in side view and in part in plan view which are provisionally connected with a bonding material using the method of the invention,

(4) FIG. 3 shows a schematic pressure/temperature diagram for carrying out the method of the invention according to a first exemplary embodiment,

(5) FIG. 4 shows a schematic pressure/temperature diagram for carrying out the method of the invention according to a second exemplary embodiment,

(6) FIG. 5 shows a schematic temperature/time diagram for carrying out the method of the invention according to the first and/or second exemplary embodiment,

(7) FIGS. 6 & 7 show schematic, partially sectional side views of a soldering apparatus of the invention according to a first exemplary embodiment in various adjustment positions,

(8) FIG. 8 shows side views of various solder groups, and

(9) FIGS. 9 & 10 show schematic diagrams of a soldering apparatus of the invention arranged in a process chamber according to a second and a third exemplary embodiment;

(10) FIGS. 11a, b show schematic diagrams of a soldering apparatus of the invention according to a fourth exemplary embodiment;

(11) FIGS. 12a, b show schematic diagrams of a soldering apparatus of the invention according to a fifth exemplary embodiment;

(12) FIGS. 13a, b show schematic diagrams of a soldering apparatus of the invention according to a sixth exemplary embodiment;

(13) FIGS. 14a, b show schematic diagrams of a soldering apparatus of the invention according to a seventh exemplary embodiment.

(14) FIGS. 1 and 2 show components 12A, 12B which are to be connected together with the assistance of solder material. Solder material 16, for example in the form of one or a plurality of solder pads, as are used, for example, in BGAs (Ball Grid Arrays), is arranged in each case between components 12A and 12B. Components 12A, 12B are in each case stacked on a further component in the form of a circuit carrier 14, wherein a component 12B lying directly on the circuit carrier 14 may already in a preceding step have been connected with the circuit carrier 14 or solder material 16 in as yet unmelted form may likewise have been provided there.

(15) The components 12B are identical or somewhat larger in cross-section than the components 12A and may thus project a little beyond the latter on all sides. The solder material 16 arranged in the form of pads, in contrast, is somewhat smaller in cross-section than the components 12A, such that there are circumferential narrow cavities along the edges of the components 12A and 12B. In the region of the corners of the components, bonding material 18 in the form of small drops, which provisionally connects the components to form a respective solder group 10, is in each case introduced into these cavities. The bonding material 18 is preferably liquid or pasty and in particular comprises a terpene alcohol, in particular isobornyl cyclohexanol. Isobornyl cyclohexanol is for example obtainable under the trade name “Terusolve MTPH” from Nippon Terpene Chemicals, Inc.

(16) The bonding material 18 fixes the components 12A, 12B relative to one another in a joining position by adhesion, such that they are secured at least in a lateral direction against unintentional slipping or displacement, for example by vibration during transfer into a process chamber.

(17) A solder group 10, as shown in FIG. 1 or 2, may then be introduced into a process chamber which may comprise a soldering apparatus. FIGS. 9 and 10 show exemplary process chambers which are explained in greater detail below.

(18) The process chamber is sealed off from its surroundings and has respective apparatuses which are capable of modifying the pressure in the process chamber and of respectively heating or melting the components 12A, 12B and the solder material 16. Further apparatuses which are capable of cooling the connected components 12A, 12B back down may furthermore be present in the process chamber. Alternatively, one or more further process chambers may be provided, into which one or more solder groups 10 may be automatically or manually transferred for cooling and/or for further processing steps.

(19) A method for producing a solder connection between the components 12A, 12B will now be described below according to two different configurations.

(20) The pressure/temperature diagrams (p/t diagrams) of FIGS. 3 and 4 use arrows to schematically represent changes in pressure and temperature between various process points. A liquidus curve L represents the phase boundary between the solid and liquid state of matter of the solder material 16, for example tin-silver-copper solder, and extends virtually independently of pressure at a temperature of approx. 220° C. A phase boundary P indicates the transition of the bonding material 18 from the liquid phase into the vapour phase as a function of temperature and pressure, wherein, above and to the left of the curve, the bonding material 18 is in the liquid phase and, below and to the right of the curve, it is in the vapour phase.

(21) For isobornyl cyclohexanol as the bonding material 18, on which the p/t diagrams shown are based, the boiling point at atmospheric pressure is between 308° C. and 313° C. The boiling point of the bonding material can be reduced to below the melting point of the solder material by reducing the pressure in the process chamber. This makes it possible to heat the solder group 10 to close to the melting point of the solder material 16 without the bonding material 18 already evaporating.

(22) Starting from a process point A, at which atmospheric pressure and room temperature prevail, initially only the temperature is raised until, at a process point B, a temperature of approx. 180° C. is reached.

(23) In the exemplary embodiment according to FIG. 3, in a subsequent step the pressure in the process chamber is then reduced until a process point C at 180° C. and a pressure between 1 and 10 mbar is achieved. The phase boundary P is crossed during the transition from process point B to process point C, such that the bonding material 18 evaporates and can be discharged from the process chamber.

(24) A cleaning agent, for example methanoic acid or hydrogen may then be introduced into the process chamber or a plasma may be introduced or produced in order to clean the components 12A, 12B to be connected.

(25) In a following step, the temperature may then be raised from 180° C. to the melting temperature of the solder material 16 of 220° C. or above, such that process point D is reached.

(26) In the second exemplary embodiment according to FIG. 4, at variance with the first exemplary embodiment according to FIG. 3, once process point B is reached the pressure is simply reduced until a process point B′ is reached which is still just above the phase boundary P of the bonding material 18, i.e. still within the liquid phase of the bonding material. Process point B′ is for example located at a temperature of 180° C. and a pressure between 10 and 100 mbar.

(27) When process point B′ is reached, cleaning agent is, as previously described, introduced into the process chamber in order to clean the components 12A, 12B of contamination. In contrast with the first exemplary embodiment, the bonding material 18 does not yet evaporate at process point B′. Once cleaning is complete, the pressure is further reduced at largely constant temperature until process point C with a temperature of 180° C. and a pressure of between 1 and 10 mbar is reached. The bonding material 18 now begins to evaporate and, together with the cleaning agent, is discharged from the process chamber.

(28) Under approximately constant pressure, the temperature of the solder group 10 is then raised until, at process point D, the liquidus curve L is reached or crossed and the solder material 18 melts and connects with the components 12A, 12B.

(29) It should be noted at this point that the transition between the various process points A, B, B′, C and D is only schematic. Temperature and pressure may accordingly at least in places also be simultaneously changed, such that states need not necessarily change isothermally or isobarically. However, prior to establishing the conditions which bring about evaporation of the bonding to material 18, efforts are made to bring the temperature of the solder group 10 as close as possible to the liquidus temperature of the solder material 16 in order as far as possible to minimise the period of time during which the bonding material 18 has already evaporated but the components are not yet connected.

(30) It furthermore goes without saying that pressure deviations may also occur during the process which are caused by evaporation of bonding material 18 and/or solvents or cleaning agents, since any gas which arises can only be cleared from the process chamber by the corresponding vacuum devices of the process chamber with a time delay.

(31) FIG. 5 shows an exemplary temperature/time diagram, on which the time profile of the solder group temperature is indicated by a temperature curve T.

(32) The soldering process may be subdivided into various process phases P1 to P4 which are indicated accordingly in FIG. 5. Various regions or time periods in which specific atmospheric states prevail in the process chamber are furthermore indicated in the diagram. Regions in which a nitrogen atmosphere is present are indicated with reference sign N, regions in which a vacuum (with different pressures) prevails are indicated with the reference sign V and a region in which a cleaning agent atmosphere is present is indicated with the reference sign R.

(33) During a preheating phase P1, the temperature of the solder group is raised to 160° C. to 180° C. A nitrogen atmosphere N is present for most of the duration of the preheating phase P1, wherein a vacuum V is briefly created at the end of the preheating phase P1.

(34) Cleaning phase P2 then follows, in which a cleaning agent atmosphere R prevails and a vacuum V is produced just for a short time at the end. This short vacuum phase indicates the discharge of the evaporated bonding material or cleaning agent. The temperature changes only slightly during the cleaning phase P2.

(35) The preheating phase P1 and the cleaning phase P2 advantageously proceed in a first chamber (preheating chamber) of a multichamber system.

(36) Then, during melting phase P3, the temperature rises to the melting temperature of the solder material of approx. 220° C., wherein a nitrogen atmosphere N is initially present which, once the melting temperature is reached, is replaced by a vacuum V. At the end of the melting phase P3, nitrogen is again introduced into the process chamber, wherein this nitrogen atmosphere N is also maintained during the subsequent cooling phase P4, in which the temperature is reduced to below 50° C.

(37) The melting phase P3 advantageously proceeds in a second chamber (soldering chamber) and the cooling phase P4 in a third chamber (cooling chamber), wherein the two phases P3 and P4 may also proceed in a single chamber.

(38) The individual chambers may advantageously be separated from one another in gas-tight manner and a conveying device for passing the workpiece carriers through the individual chambers is provided, such that higher throughput can be achieved in flow production.

(39) A soldering apparatus 50 of the invention according to a first exemplary embodiment is described below with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7. The stop apparatus described below is advantageously used at least in the cooling chamber during cooling phase P4 while the solder is still liquid. A contact pressure may here act on the top of the components.

(40) The soldering apparatus 50 comprises a base frame 54 and a carrier unit 52 connected with the base frame 54. A substrate 14 of a solder group 10 is placed in the base frame 54 and is preloaded towards the base frame 54 by pressure springs 72 which bear against the carrier unit 52. A pressure plate 64 is spring-mounted by means of pressure springs 70 on the carrier unit 52. The pressure plate 64 has a stop apparatus with a plurality of stop elements 68 which are length-adjustably fastened to the pressure plate 64 by means of adjusting threads. A spring-loaded temperature sensor which can measure the temperature of the substrate 14 is integrated in a through-hole in the base plate 66.

(41) Once the solder group 10 has been placed in the base frame 54 and the carrier unit 52 fastened to the base frame 54, the unit comprising carrier unit 52 and base frame 54 can be inserted into a retaining unit 56, wherein the base frame 54 is fixed by means of guide rollers 58, 60 and retaining strips 62.

(42) The soldering apparatus 50 furthermore comprises a height-adjustable base plate 66 which can come into direct contact with the substrate 14 through the base frame 54 which is open at the bottom.

(43) The soldering apparatus 50 may be arranged, as will be explained in greater detail below, in an evacuatable process chamber.

(44) The base plate 66 and/or the pressure plate 64 may be connected with heat sources and/or heat sinks (not shown) which make it possible to heat or cool the solder group 10. If the base plate 66 is adjusted in the direction of the arrow (FIG. 7) towards the pressure plate 64, the circuit carrier 14, including the components 12A, 12B mounted thereon, is lifted out of the base frame 54 against the force of the pressure springs 72. After a specific adjustment travel, the upper component 12B comes into contact with the pressure plate 64A such that a pressure force is applied to the solder group 10 and the components 12A, 12B or the circuit carrier 14 are compressed until the free end of the stop elements 68 comes into contact with the circuit carrier 14. In this position shown in FIG. 7, the pressure plate 64 and the base plate 66 have reached their minimum spacing, such that the solder group 10 can be no further compressed. As a consequence, it is possible according to FIG. 8 to create a solder group 10 which has a defined height h.

(45) If, instead of the circuit carrier 14, an auxiliary carrier plate (not shown) is placed in the base frame 54, on which one or more components 12A, 12B are merely laid without solder material and in turn solder material 16 is laid on the components 12A, 12B, these components 12A, 12B can be provided, before a solder connection is actually produced, with a coating of melted solder material 16 which likewise has a defined height h (see FIG. 8). The pressure plate 64 may for this purpose be provided with a release agent coating at the contact point with the solder material 16.

(46) Soldering apparatuses 150, 250 according to a second or third exemplary embodiment will now be described with reference to FIGS. 9 and 10 respectively. The soldering apparatuses 150, 250 comprise an evacuatable process chamber 74 which is sealed off from its environment. In the process chamber 74, an only schematically represented retaining unit 56 is shown which receives or mounts a base frame 54. A circuit carrier 14 as a component part of two solder groups 10 is in turn mounted in the base frame 54.

(47) The soldering apparatus 150 (FIG. 9) comprises a pressure plate 64 which is mounted on the process chamber 74.

(48) The soldering apparatus 250 (FIG. 10) comprises a pressure plate 64 which is mounted on the base frame 54 in a similar manner as in the first exemplary embodiment (FIGS. 6 and 7).

(49) The soldering apparatuses 150, 250 further comprise a height-adjustable base plate 66 which may come into contact with the substrate through an opening in the base frame 54. The substrate with the two solder groups 10 may here be pressed against the pressure plate 64. On the pressure plate 64 are fastened stop elements 68 which, once a minimum spacing between the base plate 66 and the pressure plate 64 has been reached, bear on the circuit carrier 14, such that the solder groups 10 are no further compressed and thus have a defined height.

(50) The stop elements 68 may here also be of height-adjustable construction.

(51) The pressure plate 64 may be planar (FIGS. 6, 7 and 10) or according to a variation have one or more projecting steps 76 which come into contact with the solder groups 10 (FIG. 9). The steps 76 may, as shown in FIG. 9, have a somewhat smaller cross-section such that they only come into contact with part of the surface of the uppermost component. As a consequence, a temperature gradient can be produced within the components.

(52) Advantageously, various selective cooling concepts in the context of horizontal alignment may be achieved by the pressure plate. Selective cooling on completion of the soldering operation is known in the prior art, for instance concepts involving exposing a soldered item to coolant vapour from the bottom or mechanically contacting it with cooling pins. It is thus ensured that, during the solidification process, the soldering agent solidifies in defined manner from the inside outwards and thus no voids and defects are formed in the solder's microstructure. The remaining FIGS. 11 to 14 (in each case with distant and applied pressure plate) show various concepts for mechanically contacting a cooling or heating device with the top of a component in order to permit selective control of heating or cooling in such a way that the solidification process of the soldering agent can also be selectively influenced from above by mechanical connection by the pressure plate.

(53) FIGS. 11 to 14 show different embodiments which illustrate various options for selectively cooling or heating solder groups uniformly or nonuniformly from the top:

(54) In FIG. 11a (with spaced pressure plate 64), a step 76 of the pressure plate 64, which step is coolable or heatable, is being advanced towards a solder group 10 of stacked components 12 which are connected by means of solder material 16, see FIG. 11b, in order to provide cooling/heating from above. Compression travel is limited by stop elements 68 which bear on the top of a component frame 82 or jig. The stop plate 64 is guided by a pressure apparatus retaining to frame 84 which serves as a frame for the pressure plate 64, wherein the retaining frame 84 may be alternatively heated or cooled by means of ports 78 for a thermofluid. The thermofluid may be a pressurised water and glycol mixture which allows the temperature of the pressure plate to be rapidly set. The base plate 66, which carries the circuit carrier 14, may likewise be heated or cooled by a thermofluid by means of ports 78, such that the temperature can be set from both above and below. Prior to application of pressure, the solder material 16 is nonuniformly distributed under the solder group 10, such that the solder group 10 is askew relative to the circuit carrier 14, resulting in a variable solder distribution. After application of pressure in FIG. 11b, horizontal alignment may be achieved and solder material uniformly distributed within and below the solder group 10.

(55) In a configuration, modified relative to FIG. 11, of the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 12a (spaced pressure plate 64) and FIG. 12b (application of pressure onto the solder group 10), an overall solder group 10 comprising a plurality of components 12a to 12d is compressed by a single pressure plate 64. The temperature of the pressure plate 64 is in turn adjusted by a retaining frame 84 through which fluid is passed and the temperature of the base plate 66 arranged beneath the solder group 10 may likewise be adjusted via the circuit carrier 14. The solder group includes a plurality of adjacent components 12c, 12d which are sandwiched by larger components 12a, 12b as base and cover. Aligning the larger components 12a, 12b, for example cooling plate and backplane, aligns the smaller components 12c, 12d.

(56) In the embodiment of a stop apparatus shown in FIGS. 13a, 13b (in respectively open and compressed representation), a plurality of pressure plates 64a, 64b are provided which may be separately and individually displaced but may also be jointly displaced on a retaining frame 84. The pressure plates 64a, 64b in each case comprise individually settable pressure elements 68, which may for example have different heights and are separately or jointly temperature-adjustable by means of fluid ports 78. Thanks to steps 76, different solder groups 10a, 10b can be compressed on a substrate carrier 14 in a manner adapted to the height and size of the surface. In this manner, soldered items 10 of differing heights can be selectively cooled and aligned. Heating or cooling capacity can be individually set on different pressure elements. The various stop elements 76 ensure individually settable stop heights of the pressure plates 64a, 64b.

(57) Finally, the embodiment represented in FIGS. 14a, 14b (open and compressed state) shows a pressure plate 64 without its own cooling or heating device. The temperature of the pressure plate 64 can be indirectly adjusted via a laterally arranged cooling or heating device which is integrated in a retaining frame 84 of the pressure plate 64. The pressure plate 64 may accordingly for example be integrated in a hold-down device and/or may have its temperature adjusted by a cooling or heating device arranged beneath the soldered item. Vertical steps 76 are arranged on the pressure plate which are capable of selectively bearing on individual surface regions of the solder group 10 and are capable of selectively introducing or removing heat. The steps 76 simultaneously serve as stop elements 68. Individual components 12a may here be compressed and temperature-adjusted while other, pressure-sensitive components 12b, 12c of the solder group 10 are left free.

(58) The embodiments shown in FIGS. 11-14 may be used individually or in combination and may synergistically complement and be combined with one another or individually exert their advantageous effect.

(59) In all the embodiments of the soldering apparatus 50, 150, 250 (FIGS. 6 to 14), the components 12A, 12B may be provisionally connected by means of bonding material 18 with one another, with the solder material 16 and/or with the circuit carrier or substrate 14 in the manner described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5.

LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS

(60) 10 Solder group 12A, 12B Component 14 Substrate/circuit carrier 16 Solder material 18 Bonding material 50, 150, 250 Soldering apparatus 52 Carrier unit 54 Base frame 56 Retaining unit 58, 60 Guide roller 62 Retaining strip 64 Pressure plate 66 Base plate 68 Stop element 70, 72 Pressure spring 74 Process chamber 76 Step 78 Temperature-adjustment fluid port 82 Component frame 84 Pressure apparatus retaining frame A, B, B′, C, D Process point L Liquidus curve N Nitrogen atmosphere P Phase boundary P1 Preheating phase P2 Cleaning phase P3 Melting phase P4 Cooling phase R Cleaning agent atmosphere T Temperature curve V Vacuum