A review on discoloration and high accelerated testing of optical materials in LED based-products

Reduction of intensity of light output is one of the most common degradation modes in light-emitting diode (LED) systems. It starts from the failure of the various components in the system, including the chip, the driver, and optical components (i.e. phosphorous layer). The kinetics of degradation in real life applications is relatively slow and in most cases it takes several years to see an obvious deterioration of optical properties. Highly Accelerated Stress Testing (HAST) set-up and a methodology to extrapolate the results to real time applications are therefore needed to test the reliability of LED packages and lens materials. Using HAST concept in LED industry is inevitable due to the necessity of assessing the reliability of new products in a short period of time. This paper aims at briefly clarifying the degradation mechanisms of optical components in LED packages and explaining how they contribute to the depreciation of light output of the LED systems. The concept of HAST and the way the reliability of LED packages can be evaluated will also be discussed.     

高密度陶瓷倒装焊封装可靠性试验开路后的失效定位

陶瓷材料具有优良的综合特性,被广泛应用于高可靠微电子封装.陶瓷倒装焊封装的特殊结构使得对其进行失效分析相较其他传统封装形式更为困难.针对一款在可靠性试验中发生开路的高密度陶瓷倒装焊封装器件,制定了一套从非破坏性到破坏性的试验方案对其进行分析.通过时域反射计(TDR)测试排除了基板内部失效的可能性,通过X射线(X-ray)检测、超声扫描显微镜(SAM)和光学显微分析初步断定失效位置,并最终通过扫描电子显微镜和X射线能谱仪实现了对该器件的准确的失效定位,确定失效位置为基板端镀Ni层.该失效分析方法对其他陶瓷倒装焊封装的失效检测及分析有一定的借鉴意义.     

Lifetime assessment of Bisphenol-A Polycarbonate (BPA-PC) plastic lens,used in LED-based products

In this investigation, the accelerated optical degradation of two different commercial Bisphenol-A Polycarbonate (BPA-PC) grades under elevated temperature stress is studied. The BPA-PC plates are used both in light conversion carriers in LED modules and encapsulants in LED packages. BPA-PC plates are exposed to temperatures in the range of 100–140 °C. Optical properties of the thermally-aged plates were studied using an integrated sphere. The results show that increasing the exposure time leads to degradation of BPA-PC optical properties, i.e. decrease of light transmission and increase in the yellowing index (YI). An exponential luminous decay model and Arrhenius equation are used to predict the lumen depreciation over different time and temperatures. Accelerated thermal stress tests together with the applied reliability model are used to predict the lifetime of plastic lens in LED lamps in real life conditions.     

Thermal analysis of remote phosphor in LED modules

Phosphor plays an important role in LED packages by converting the wavelength of light and achieving specific color.The property and degradation of phosphor are strongly affected by the temperature.Some structural factors have been investigated in this paper and their effects are evaluated.Remote phosphor is an effective approach to improve the performance and reliability of LED modules and products.It is a trade-off that the final product design depends on both the thermal performance and the cost.     

Board level reliability assessment of chip scale packages

A large program had been initiated to study the board level reliability of various types of chip scale package (CSP). The results on six different packages are reported here, which cover flex interposer CSP, rigid interposer CSP, wafer level assembly CSP, and lead frame CSP. The packages were assembled on FR4 PCBs of two different thicknesses. Temperature cycling tests from −40°C to +125°C with 15 min dwell time at the extremes were conducted to failure for all the package types. The failure criteria were established based on the pattern of electrical resistance change. The cycles to failure were analyzed using Weibull distribution function for each type of package. Selected packages were tested in the temperature/humidity chamber under 85°C/85%RH for 1000 h. Some assembled packages were tested in vibration condition as well. In all these tests, the electrical resistance of each package under testing was monitored continuously. Test samples were also cross-sectioned and analyzed under a Scanning Electronic Microscope (SEM). Different failure mechanisms were identified for various packages. It was noted that some packages failed at the solder joints while others failed inside the package, which was packaging design and process related.     

The reliability of laser diodes and laser transmitter modules

This paper reviews the reliability of laser transmitter modules for use in optical fibre transmission systems. Methods for reliability testing and lifetime prediction are discussed and the dominant failure mechanisms affecting laser modules are described. The current status of laser module reliability is discussed, based on both published results, and on the findings of a study at BT Laboratories of the reliability of commercial laser modules from ten manufacturers. It is concluded that significant progress has been made in the reliability of laser diodes, through the understanding of basic failure mechanisms, leading to long predicted lifetimes for a number of different laser structures. However, module packaging is less reliable and further work is required to identify and eliminate those materials and processing technologies which lead to the risk of early failure.     

层压封装平面LED光源的耐候实验

研究了层压封装的平面LED光源在高温高湿与水下环境的可靠性。平面LED光源采用标准层压工艺封装,对封装后的LED模组进行高温高湿耐候试验与水下环境试验,并与未封装的LED模组进行对比实验。实验结果表明,在环境温度为80℃、相对湿度为80%,模组工作电流为300 mA,连续33天高温高湿条件下,层压封装的平面LED模组的照度变化和温度均高于未封装的LED模组。在40℃水下环境下连续工作400 h,层压封装的平面LED模组的照度略有变化,且光衰小于1%。因此,层压封装能有效阻断外界高温高湿环境对LED模组可靠性的影响,更适合在常温水下照明应用。     

A Reliability Evaluation of Plastic Packaged Semiconductor Components

Qualification testing programs have been developed for assessing the reliability of commercial grade discrete semiconductors for use in office business machines. These programs include accelerated stresses of high temperature storage (HTS) and high temperature reverse bias (HTRB) for 1000 hours, and a sequence test of thermal cycle and thermal shock followed by storage at 85°C and 85% RH (85/85) for 1000 hours. Both hermetic and plastic encapsulated parts have been tested more than 15 million part hours. HTRB and 85/85 are about twice as effective as HTS in identifying potentially unreliable parts. Plastic packaged semiconductors are inherently capable of withstanding 85/85 for 1000 hours without parameter degradation. The value of qualification testing against the 85/85 environment is demonstrated by the observed correlation of machine failure rates in the field with the relative humidity in the use environment. The observed failure rate of plastic parts is not more than 3.2 times that of hermetic parts. Plastic parts are capable of reliable operation, but the marked differences in reliability between different vendors and between different part types from the same vendor require increased process and materials control in order to achieve the potential of which plastic parts are capable.     

Fatigue life evaluation of wire bonds in LED packages using numerical analysis

Reliability of LED packages is evaluated using several tests. When a thermal shock test, which is one of the reliability tests, is conducted, the most common failure mode is wire neck breakage. In order to evaluate the wire bonding reliability of LED packages, performing the thermal shock test is time-consuming. In this paper the wire bonding reliability for LED packages is evaluated by using numerical analysis. A wire bonding lifetime model for the thermal shock test was developed, which is based on Coffin-Manson fatigue law. The model was calibrated from fatigue data of thermal shock tests and volume averaging accumulated plastic strains. The accumulated plastic strains were calculated by using finite element analysis corresponding to the test conditions. The test conditions were changed by silicones, package sizes, wire bonding diameters, heights, and lengths. The calibrated model was used to estimate the number cycle to failure so that the wire bonding reliability for the thermal shock test was evaluated by performing the numerical analysis. Furthermore, we used a response surface methodology to study the relationship between the wire loop and the accumulated plastic strain to determine the optimal wire loop. The plastic strain was a function of diameter, height and length. At the optimal point, the number of cycle to failure for the thermal shock test was suggested using the wire bonding lifetime model.     

Reliability of optical components for use in submarine optical fiber transmission systems

This paper presents the reliability test results for LD modules, optical couplers, and APD modules, which are fabricated through methods for achieving and assuring a high degree of reliability for use in 400-Mbit/s submarine optical fiber transmission systems. In particular, the paper presents methods for evaluating the optical component reliability as well as an investigation into the degradation factors in the coupling circuits. From the reliability test results obtained, the paper also discusses the mechanism and test acceleration of wear-out degradation following reliability tests conducted for more than 8000 h on the fabricated optical components. These optical components are consequently confirmed to be highly reliable for a system life of 25 years.     

Overdriving reliability of chip scale packaged LEDs: Quantitatively analyzing the impact of component

The objective of this study is to quantitatively evaluate the impacts of LED components on the overdriving reliability of high power white LED chip scale packages (CSPs). The reliability tests under room temperature are conducted over 1000 h in this study on CSP LEDs with overdriving currents. A novel method is proposed to investigate the impact of various components, including blue die, phosphor layer, and substrate, on the lumen depreciation of CSP LEDs after aging test. The electro-optical measurement results show that the overdriving current can lead to both massive light output degradation and significant color shift of CSP LEDs. The quantitative analysis results show that the phosphor layer is the major contributor to the failure in early period aging test. For the long-term reliability, the degradations of phosphor and reflectivity of substrate contribute significantly on lumen depreciation. The proposed reliability assessment method with overdriving loadings can be usefully implemented for LED manufacturers to make a cost- and effective-decision before mass production.     

Degradation of silicone in white LEDs during device operation: a finite element approach to product reliability prediction

Silicone, which is a very common material for Light Emitting Diode (LED) packaging components like lens, casting and housing, undergoes degradation during high temperature and current operation. Indeed, electrical and optical losses cause material shrinkage and hardening, inducing mechanical stress within the LED assembly, which can end up into crack formation in silicone. In order to evaluate the reliability of LED package regarding the silicone crack, a degradation material model is developed, which is based on the experimental investigation of the mechanical properties of silicone during degradation. A thermo-optical model is used for the calculation of the temperature distribution in the device during steady-state operation. The crack reliability model, which is build combining the stress simulation results based on finite element approach and the visual inspection of the corresponding LED package during steady-state operation, is used to estimate the package lifetime depending on the operation conditions.     

用高低温循环加速试验评估光源模块长期贮存寿命的研究

Light source modules are the most crucial and fragile devices that affect the life and reliability of the interferometric fiber optic gyroscope （IFOG）. While the light emitting chips were stable in most cases, the module packaging proved to be less satisfactory. In long-term storage or the working environment, the ambient temperature changes constantly and thus the packaging and coupling performance of light source modules are more likely to degrade slowly due to different materials with different coefficients of thermal expansion in the bonding interface. A constant temperature accelerated life test cannot evaluate the impact of temperature variation on the performance of a module package, so the temperature cycling accelerated life test was studied. The main failure mechanism affecting light source modules is package failure due to solder fatigue failure including a fiber coupling shift, loss of cooling efficiency and thermal resistor degradation, so the Norris-Landzberg model was used to model solder fatigue life and determine the activation energy related to solder fatigue failure mechanism. By analyzing the test data, activation energy was determined and then the mean life of light source modules in different storage environments with a continuously changing temperature was simulated, which has provided direct reference data for the storage life prediction of IFOG.     

一种利用有限元法模拟LED芯片结点温度的方法

提出了一种以有限元法估算发光二极管(LED)光源模块结点温度的方法,提出了较详细的计算步骤,最后以6只1 W大功率LED组成的光源模块为例,演示如何以实测为基础,实测与软件试算相结合来估算LED光源模块的芯片结点温度.结果证明该方法具有较好的预测性,可以用来研究LED光源模块的温度分布,从而为研究LED封装材料匹配性、系统可靠性提供一定的参照.     

Color shift acceleration on mid-power LED packages

Mid-power LED packages are now widely used in many indoor illumination applications due to several advantages. Temperature stress, humidity stress and current stress were experimentally designed and performed to accelerate the color shift of mid-power LED packages and color shift mechanisms have been discussed based on the color shift results obtained from measurements. Conclusions could be drawn:

• -Linear function fitting demonstrates a good linear relationship between color shift (Δu′ Δv′) and aging time almost for all the aging conditions. We can extrapolate the color shift Δu′ and Δv′ based on the fitted regression equations and then make the prediction for the total color shift Δu′v′.
• -Current stress can induce a different failure mode. Peak intensity reduction analysis reveals that the current stress accelerates the degradation of LED die.
• -Humidity test induced a substantial color shift both in u′ and v′. The u′ has an increased degradation rate after aging of 3000 h at 85%RH & 85 °C, there should be different degradation mechanisms during the whole humidity test. The molecular structure decomposition of silicone plates and then follows the silicone carbonization due to the long-term (3000 h) accumulated high localized temperature aging.

     

Hermetic-equivalent packaging of GPS MCM-L modules for highreliability avionics applications

Results are presented of comparative reliability testing of multichip modules (MCM's) fabricated with laminate substrates, and protected with various bare-die coatings. The demonstration MCM's included two design versions (flip-chip and wire-bond) of the digital portion of global positioning system (GPS) receiver multichip modules. This paper summarizes the results for the wire-bonded constructions. Standard encapsulants and new inorganic coatings (Dow Coming's ChipSeal(R) hermetic coating materials') were evaluated in environmental stress exposures corresponding to high reliability avionics applications. Full wafer probe testing was performed both before and after the supplemental ChipSeal processing and dip-chip wafer bump processing steps. ChipSeal and flip-chip wafer processing steps were shown to cause no yield degradation on wafer lots of five different IC types used in the overall program. The environmental test results demonstrate that MCM-L units with bare die packaging can be designed for very robust reliability applications such as military and other high reliability avionics     

Enhancement of light-emitting diode reliability using silicone microsphere in encapsulant

The aim of this study was to prevent the delamination of encapsulant for light-emitting diode (LED) without sacrificing other optical performance. Silicone microsphere was employed to control the properties of shrinkage and hardness of encapsulant during curing process. The effects of microsphere in encapsulant were investigated by using the different concentration of microsphere. After curing reaction, the shrinkage percentage and hardness of both shore A and D encapsulants were reduced and reinforced, as increasing the concentration of microsphere. Despite the addition of microsphere, the LED packages fabricated without/with microsphere showed the similar initial optical efficiencies. It is because the light scattering effect compensated their small difference of refractive indexes between encapsulants and microsphere. Using the silicone microsphere, the improvement of reliability of LED packages could be achieved after 1000 h under condition of temperature (85 °C)/humidity (RH 85%). It is attributed to the synergy effects of shrinkage suppression and hardness improvement.     

Chip package interaction for LED packages

Solid-state lightings (SSL) rapidly penetrate the global illumination market because of the energy efficiency and the reliability. The energy efficiency can be easily evaluated but the reliability is not convenient to be estimated. Among several reliability issues, a LED chip level's reliability could be a difficult problem because chip failures related to electromigration phenomenon are hard to be detected in the early stages. In order to remove potential leakage LEDs in modules, additional screening method is necessary to be performed occasionally. In this study, chip package interaction (CPI) for LED packages was investigated in order to estimate stresses of the LED chip in the module level. This methodology would help LED manufacturers to perform a robust design of LED packages in terms of the LED chip reliability. The electromigration is related to metal diffusion, which belongs to a creep phenomenon. As the creep strain is a function of temperature, stress and time, quantifying stresses in the metal layers of the LED die can be useful information for LED manufacturers to make an engineering decision in the early stages of manufacturing.     

Materials characterization of the effect of mechanical bending on area array package interconnects

The mechanical integrity of solder joint interconnects in PWB assemblies with micro-BGA, chip scale, and land grid array packages is being questioned as the size and pitch decrease. Some consumer products manufacturers have mechanically reinforced fine pitch package interconnects with an adhesive underfill, and others are evaluating the need for underfill on a case-by-case basis. Three-point cyclic bend testing provides a useful tool for characterizing the expected mechanical cycling fatigue reliability of PWB assemblies. Cyclic bend testing is useful for characterizing bending issues in electronic assemblies such as repetitive keypad actuation in cell phone products. This paper presents the results of three-point bend testing of PWB assemblies with fine pitch packages. The solder joints on ceramic components performed better than a laminate interposer component in bend testing, because of the stiffening effect of the ceramic packaging materials. The methodology of materials analyses of the metallurgy of solder interconnects following mechanical bending and thermal cycle testing is described. The microstructure and fracture surfaces of solder joint failures in bend test samples differed significantly from thermal cycle test samples.