Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1511625
38 PCB007 MAGAZINE I NOVEMBER 2023 For the DIY enthusiasts: • IBM's CITC coupon • PerfecTest coupons • HP's PTS coupons IPC D-Coupon e IPC D-Coupons from IPC-2221B Appendix A are used for reliability testing of through-hole, and blind and buried vias from production panels. ey are two sets of daisy-chain vias connected for monitoring resistance with the 4-wire Kelvin resistance mea- surements. Two Type-D cou- pons are shown in Figure 5g. Conductor Analysis Test Coupons Conductor analysis technol- ogy (CAT) is the longest run- ning, commercially available parametric coupon system. Born out of an NCMS program with Sandia National Labora- tory, founders Tim Estes and Ron Rhodes licensed the test- ing machine from Sandia and started CAT in 1994. e test equipment and methodology are patented under U.S. Patent No. 5,659,483. Because of the length of availability, its thor- oughness, and the wealth of publications, the CAT coupons are the most used and bench- marked. Six coupons, all 25.4 mm x 25.4 mm (1.0" x 1.0") make up the primary sensors for CAT (Figure 4a-f ). ese are: a. Conductor: Spacing b. Via formation: Nets daisy chain c. Registration: I/L and O/L d. New registration: I/L and O/L e. Solder mask registration f. Impedance e value of a parametric system such as CAT is its ability to capture the true capabil- Figure 4: Conductor analysis technology (CAT): a) Conductor/spacing coupon; b) 4 via-nets daisy-chain coupon; c) Registration coupon; d) Drill overshoot coupon; e) Solder mask registration coupon; f) Imped- ance coupon; g) Sensitive AC chopped 4-wire micro-ohm test sys- tem; h) Portable coupon test system using Agilent 34401A meter; i) Close-up of coupon probes; j) Current and voltage arrangement of the 4-wire Kelvin measurement configuration; k) *14-layer via rigid board illustrated by cross-section showing thickness ranges and vari- ous through-holes, blind, buried, subcomposite and back drilled vias; l) various layers, panels, and structures available 4 .