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88 PCB007 MAGAZINE I OCTOBER 2020 hicles need to be validated. Previously an in- tercomparison was organised jointly by IPC and the IEC, and the results were reported and published as IEC TR 61189-5-506. This re- port compared the response using SIR patterns with 500-µm, 318-µm, and 200-µm conductor separation. The test coupon used for this was IPC B53 Rev A. These results are now an important part of the updating of 2.6.3.7. The development work described here plans a similar exercise with the to-be-developed stan- dards and test vehicles. Work has already started, and there is a Rev B to IPC B53—the development of which was intended as a potential replacement for IPC B24, B25, and B25A coupons. A further refine- ment of the B53 to the B55 has also been de- signed, which contains an extra pair of pat- terns with 50-µm spacing. Both of these new boards are shown in Figures 1 and 2. The plan is to start this work soon and pro- duce the necessary draft standards and test ve- hicles. We feel that the broader industry needs to be aware of this work and help in the develop- ment of the next revision of the SIR/ECM stan- dard that includes: • IPC-TM-650 Method 2.6.3.7 • IPC 9201 Surface Insulation Resistance Handbook • IPC 9202 Material and Process Characterization/Qualification Test Protocol for Assessing Electrochemical Performance • IPC 9203 Users Guide to IPC-9202 and the IPC-B-52 Standard Test Vehicle A new test method for process character- isation and a toolbox of other test methods can assist in evaluating and resolving test failures. PCB007 Graham Naisbitt is the chairman and CEO of Gen3 Systems, as well as the chair of IPC 5-32b SIR/ECM, vice-chair of the IPC 5-30 Cleaning and Coating Committee, and vice-chair of 5-32e CAF. He is also the author of The Printed Circuit Assembler's Guide to...Process Validation. Visit I-007eBooks.com to download this book and other free, educational titles. Figure 1: IPC B53 Rev B. Figure 2: Proposed IPC B55.