Origin of surface defects in PCB final finishes by the electroless nickel immersion gold process

We suggest a unique mechanism for surface defect generation causing solder joint or bonding failures in printed circuit boards (PCBs). Surface defects can be defined as corroded holes or spikes of the Ni-P layers on the soldering or wire bonding pads of PCBs. The typical defects are the black pad or pinhole pad defects generated after final finishing by the electroless nickel immersion gold (ENIG) process. Once corroded voids or spikes are plentifully created in nickel/gold interfaces, the bonding strength of solder or wire bonding joints is reduced. Therefore, it is important to characterize the details of these surface defects. In this paper, the defect microstructures and the P content variation with the ENIG processes are investigated. The surface defect selectivity with pad size and pad connectivity is suggested based on the key findings of P content variation. An overall mechanism is proposed based on a mixed mode of concentration cell corrosion and galvanic cell corrosion. Based on these results, more reasonable root causes are suggested.