Issues on Viscoplastic Characterization of Lead-Free Solder for Drop Test Simulations

Abstract

Reliable drop test simulations of electronic packages require reliable material characterization of solder joints. Mechanical properties of lead-free solder were here experimentally investigated for both monotonic and cyclic loading at different strain rates. With regards to the observed complex material behavior, the nonlinear mixed hardening Armstrong and Frederick model combined with the Perzyna viscoplastic law was chosen to fit the experimental data. This model was subsequently implemented into a commercial finite element code and used to simulate drop tests. Actual drop test experiments were conducted in parallel and experimental results were compared to simulations. Prediction discrepancies were analyzed and explanations suggested.