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At IPC APEX EXPO, MacDermid Alpha Electronics Solutions showcased its latest innovations in SMT assembly materials designed to meet the growing demands for reliability and sustainability in automotive and high-performance applications. In this interview, Ebad Rehman, Business Product Manager, discusses the evolution of high- reliability alloys, spotlighting ALPHA® Innolot®, a proven solution developed in response to the automotive industry's increasing expectations for durability and performance under harsh operating conditions. He also introduces a new reworkable edgebond that supports sustainability goals by enabling component reworkability, improving manufacturing yields, and minimizing scrap, making it ideal for critical automotive applications requiring exceptional board-level reliability. Additionally, Beth Turner, Senior Technical Manager for Electrolube®, shares insights into the development of conformal coatings and thermal interface materials, emphasizing their role in enhancing PCB reliability and performance in harsh environments. Barry Matties: Ebad, it is good to speak with you. Why don't we start with a general over- view of your product lines? Ebad Rehman: My product line is primarily focused on high-reliability solutions and mate- rials for SMT applications, including edgebond, underfills, Innolot, and the future generation of high-reliability alloys. These products are focused on improving thermomechanical per- formance on ultra-high-density interconnects (UHDI) and next-generation electronics assem- blies in automotive, aerospace, and high-per- formance computing markets. Recently, we introduced our newest HiTech® reworkable edgebond, which contributes to sustainability and process flexibility. What problem are you trying to solve when looking at the reliability products? Rehman: When we look at reliability, it's a con- tinuum. In the early 2000s, the first lead-free high-reliability alloy was introduced. MacDer- mid Alpha was part of the consortium that led to the advent of Innolot, which is now synon- ymous with higher reliability alloys. That con- tinuum means we're always evolving our solu- tions—what worked five years ago simply won't meet the demands of today's electronics. As we look at trends, which are heavily driven by the automotive market segment, in-use lon- gevity and time-to-failure are critical. These mission-critical applications fuel that reliability continuum: each new generation of electron- ics tests the limits of existing materials, so we must continuously push performance higher. As we move forward, we see the trend deviat- ing from Moore's Law primarily due to advanced functional integration, which is driving a signif- icant increase in processing nodes. Moore's Law isn't just about transistor counts doubling; it also represents the continuous drive toward smaller, more complex packages—and that Advancements in High-reliability Alloys for Automotive and High- performance Applications Interview by Barry Matties