C3 Ionic Cleanliness Testing Services

 Traditional extraction methods utilize either a rinse or an immersion process, for analysis of the entire PCB surface area -- and all components -- at once. This approach necessarily "averages" all ionic contaminants across the aggregate surface area. However, seldom is contamination uniformly distributed. For example, residues may become trapped beneath low clearance parts, such as QFNs, where the low standoff height interferes with cleaning and rinsing processes. Additionally, adverse situations such as improper handling, environmental contaminants, or lack of process controls could result in localized splatter of corrosive chemicals or active fluxes. The C3 test system from Foresite fills the gap in traditional cleanliness testing methods by allowing spot testing of suspect locations or component sites. 

How It works

The Foresite C3 works by applying a small diameter (approx 1 cm) collection cell over the target area. A small volume of heated solution is applied in a series of injections. A short delay "soak" between injections allows for thorough solubilization before solution is vacuumed into the collection chamber.  A small detector circuit measures resistivity of solvent, and software plots the results. Foresite has developed a proprietary "corrosivity index" to assign a risk level for each test sample.

Foresite C3 | ionic cleanliness testing | corrosivity analysis