Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1520492
REAL TIME WITH... IPC APEX EXPO 2024 SHOW & TELL MAGAZINE I I-CONNECT007 165 a lot of research in this area of drop shock testing of PCBs at elevated temperatures." The judges said Palash and Soroosh have a good understanding of the subject matter. Julia Flynn, IPC professional development coordinator, said the Technical Program Committee members who reviewed their poster "were impressed," and gave them high scores all around for the technical content. "I am deeply honored to have received the Best Poster Award," Palash said. "Apart from alleviating the financial burden of tuition, the award will help strengthen my belief in my potential to make a difference in the electronics industry. It will greatly boost my motivation as a researcher." "The award is deeply meaningful to me," Soroosh said. "It validates the hard work and dedication I've invested in my research and reassures me that my contributions are valuable to the field. This recognition not only motivates me to continue push- ing the boundaries of what I can achieve but also reinforces my commitment to making impactful advancements in the industry." In their academic careers, Palash and Soroosh have built a solid foundation in reliability test- ing techniques that include drop shock, thermal cycling, vibration, shear and fatigue, failure analysis, and reliability modeling. They have authored and co-authored more than a dozen publications in jour- nals and conferences. While Palash is currently involved in the testing of various new gen- eration solder alloys in the form of PCB solder joints at room temperature and elevated temperature conditions and at dif- ferent acceleration levels, Soroosh is focused on PCB reliability on solder joints, specifically under harsh conditions in aerospace, mili- tary, and automotive sectors. "In our lab, we conduct a variety of experi- ments—including drop shock, thermal cycling, and vibration tests—under par- ticularly harsh environmental conditions," Soroosh said. "These experiments are car- ried out until the components, specifically the solder joints, fail. During these tests, we meticulously observe, track, and collect data on the failure outcomes, including images of cracks and voids, as well as data on the characteristic life of the solder joints, among other results."