Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1534953
testing rather than true reliabil- ity testing. Systems that use current- induced heating to stress a coupon (like IST) are a good example of that. They are typi- cally used as a robustness tes- ter that goes from a bit above room temperature to infinity really quickly by heating traces on a coupon. It puts a lot of ther- mal stress on the board, but it gives you information quickly. It doesn't tell you anything spe- cific about field reliability, but it tells you A is better than B, which is important to some people. Reliability and robust- ness testing is like religion; you have to believe in it. I wanted to make a test system that would do any of the Reliability or Robustness tests out there. If you believe in a particular cycle or temperature range for test- ing, my HATS 2 test system will do that. If you believe that super high-temperature cycling is your path, then you can do that with this system, too. For any systems that have been around for a while, includ- ing dual chamber, the HATS 2 test system will cover all their temperature ranges, cycling profiles, rise times—really any- thing that has been published before. I believe that, moving forward, this one test system will address it all. As you were developing the machine, did you have a list of features and capabilities that you knew you wanted in your machine? Neves: The driving factor was my spending 40 years running an independent laboratory. It was a passion for me. I wanted to build a test system that would meet everyone's needs for reliability or robustness test- ing of via structures, a unit that I would be proud of and that I would want in my laboratory. It has been a joy. You're probably the only per- son with 40 years of lab experi- ence to build a piece of equip- ment in this space. Neves: I think so. I've helped develop many test methods and worked with the companies making reliability test equip- ment over the past 40 years. I have an intimate knowledge of this type of testing. My lab had 14 big, dual-chamber test systems where we were doing this kind of reli- ability testing. We had other types of reliability equip- ment. So, I had everything to play with. I was able to see what worked and what didn't work. The HATS 2 test system is the culmination of put- ting all the things that worked together into one machine. Bob, didn't you partner with GEN3 for distribution and technical input? Neves: Yes, I've used GEN3 equipment in my laboratory to test the reliability of the insula- tion systems of printed circuit boards for many years. We have Andrew Naisbitt