What's New - September 2010

• Failure Analysis Short Course – Sept. 14-17
• Student Exchange Program at CALCE a Success
• Prof. Pecht to Lead Course on Chinese Electronics Industry
• CALCE Offers Short Course on Free Air Cooling
• CALCE Provides Rapid Reliabily Assessment with SARA® Software
• CALCE to Present Recent Research Findings to Consortia Members
• Upcoming Webinars

Failure Analysis Short Course – Sept. 14-17
CALCE Test Services will hold a four-day short course on Failure Analysis techniques at the CALCE Failure Analysis Lab on the University of Maryland College Park campus from September 14-17. Sponsored by CALCE and Buehler (the world's premier manufacturer of scientific equipment and supplies for use in materials analysis), this intensive short course offers lectures, demonstrations, and hands-on laboratory tasks relating to failure analysis methodology; specimen preparation; and materials analysis techniques for electronic assemblies, components, and devices. Lecture topics will include:

• Physics-of-failure root cause analysis
• Guidelines for selection of analytical tools
• Best practices on operating procedures of laboratory techniques

The laboratory portion will include demonstrations of non-destructive and destructive analysis techniques, as well as hands-on sample preparation using the latest failure analysis equipment from Buehler. Attendees may submit samples for use in laboratory and hands-on demonstrations, up to three weeks before the course. Registration for the course is $2500 USD per attendee. For more information, contact Bhanu Sood at bpsood@calce.umd.edu, or visit the information page here.

Student Exchange Program at CALCE a Success

Each year, The Center for Advanced Life Cycle Engineering (CALCE) welcomes interns from City University of Hong Kong through an ongoing exchange program between the University of Maryland (UMD) and City University. Interns from City University participate in research on a number of the center’s industry-sponsored projects in the areas of electronics products and systems reliability. Now in its sixth year, the exchange program has garnered superb results and broadened the avenues of research collaboration between City University and CALCE at UMD.

This summer, CALCE welcomed four interns from City University: Jiaqi Song, Jixiang Chen, Yu Feng Zhou and Jie Chuai. In July, the interns earned the distinct honor of presenting their midterm progress to Prof. Anthony Fong, Associate Professor and Director of the EDA Centre at City University’s Department of Electronic Engineering. The visiting interns have assisted CALCE investigators, including CALCE Test Services and Failure Analysis Laboratory Director Bhanu Sood, on work with major FY11 projects, including: Thermal Management Trends in LED Lighting Systems, FMMEA Analysis of Laptop Computer, and Tin Whisker Growth.

After a month of work, the interns shared their findings with Professor Fong and received a glowing response. The exceptional work of City University interns and Prof. Fong’s participation in their midterm progress report stands as a testament to the continued excellence produced by the CALCE-City University Intern Exchange Program. For more information on the CALCE-City university of Hong Kong Intern Exchange Program, please contact Dr. Diganta Das at digudas@calce.umd.edu.

Prof. Pecht to Lead Course on Chinese Electronics Industry
CALCE Short Course: China’s Electronics Industry
Date: Oct 18, 2010; Time: 9:00am-12:00pm; Venue: University of Maryland, College Park
Did you know that Chinese companies are acquiring businesses and resources around the globe? Were you aware that China accounts for over 35% of the revenue of the global electronics industry and has virtually complete control over the materials critical to Western consumer and military electronics? If not, Prof. Michael Pecht and CALCE are offering a unique opportunity for you to learn about China’s rapidly evolving electronics industry.

CALCE is pleased to announce a short course on China's Electronics Industry hosted by Michael Pecht and Leonard Zuga, authors of China’s Electronics Industry, 2009 Edition. Attendees of this half-day course will learn how to successfully engage the Chinese electronics industry, fast becoming the world’s leader at all levels, from research and design to manufacturing.

The course will be held at the Center for Advanced Life Cycle Engineering (CALCE) at the University of Maryland, College Park, on Monday, October 18, 2010, from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. The cost is $150 per attendee. Each attendee will receive a free copy of China’s Electronics Industry, 2009 Edition. For more information, please click here or contact Joan Lee at joanyuan@calce.umd.edu.

CALCE Offers Short Course on Free Air Cooling
CALCE Short Course: Impact of Free Air Cooling on Information and Communication Technology Equipment
Date: Oct 18, 2010; Venue: Prince George's Room, Stamp Student Union, University of Maryland, College Park
On Oct 18, 2010, CALCE will offer a one-day course on the “Impact of Free Air Cooling on Information and Communication Technology Equipment.” Free Air Cooling is increasingly used to improve energy efficiency for Information and Communication Technology (ICT) equipment. The unique cooling method uses ambient air to cool ICT equipment in data centers, base stations and other telecom infrastructures, thereby reducing the energy consumed to cool and condition the air. This short course provides an introduction to methods of free air cooling with an emphasis on the impact of free air cooling on equipment performance and reliability. Additionally, a number of industry experts will be on hand to address several topics related to fresh air cooling for information and communication technology purposes, including:

• Various methods for implementing of free air cooling
• Optimal operating environments for equipment under free air cooling
• Equipment performance and reliability risks associated with free air cooling

A wealth of beneficial information on fresh air cooling will be available to professionals considering the use of fresh air cooling in telecom infrastructures, including: infrastructure operators, equipment designers and manufacturers, data center operators, base station operators, operators of high power density telecom facilities, telecom product reliability engineers, and telecom product design engineers. For more information on this short course, please click here or contact Dr. Diganta Das at digudas@calce.umd.edu.

CALCE Provides Rapid Reliability Assessment with (SARA ®) Software
The CALCE Simulation Assisted Reliability Assessment SARA® software uses physics-of-failure principles to assess whether an electronic part or system can meet defined life cycle requirements. The software implements math-based physics models and allows for the creation of a computer model of the electronic product under review. CALCE SARA® software is used to support the CALCE Design for Reliability (DfR) assessment process, which allows design engineers to rapidly make design changes and assess the impact of product reliability. The software can also be used to assess life expectancy of electronic hardware under anticipated life cycle loading and accelerated stress test conditions.

On October 18, CALCE Electronic Products and Systems Consortium (EPSC) Director Dr. Michael Osterman will lead a one-day workshop on the center’s one-of-a-kind physics-of-failure based simulation assisted reliability assessment software, SARA®. The SARA® workshop will include an immersive tutorial session, followed by a comprehensive update on the software's newest features. Registration is free to CALCE EPSC consortium members. For more information on SARA and the upcoming workshop, please click here or contact Dr. Michael Osterman at osterman@calce.umd.edu.

CALCE to Present Technical Findings to Consortia Members

CALCE EPSC Fall Technical Review and Project Kickoff Meetings
Date: October 19-20, 2010; Venue: Prince George's Room, Stamp Student Union, University of Maryland, College Park, MD
CALCE’s Fall Technical Review and Project Planning Meetings are scheduled for October 19-20, 2010 at the Stamp Student Union, on the University of Maryland College Park campus. The meeting will allow Electronic Products and Systems Consortium (EPSC) members to review FY10 research findings and discuss FY11 Research Projects. All current Consortium members are invited to attend. Non-member attendees must pay a $1,500 registration fee. Organizations interested in becoming CALCE EPSC members and wishing to attend the meeting should contact Dr. Michael Osterman at osterman@calce.umd.edu. For information on the Fall Review and Project Planning Meetings, please click here.

Prognostics and Health Management Fall Technical Review
Date: October 21, 2010; Venue: University of Maryland, College Park, MD
The CALCE Prognostics and Health Management (PHM) Consortium will convene on October 21 for its 2010 Fall Technical Review, to be held at CALCE headquarters on the University of Maryland's College Park campus. This October’s review will include a slate of presentations, workshops and short course sessions dedicated to addressing current issues in physics-of-failure, data-driven and fusion approaches to prognostics. During the one-day event, faculty, staff and student members of the CALCE Prognostics and Health Management (PHM) Group will present the latest research from 2010 projects and case studies, and introduce a schedule of new projects for 2011. The Technical Review meeting is one of the PHM Group’s premier events and will bring together representatives from a number of PHM Consortium members, including:  NASA, US Army, Boeing, Honeywell, Raytheon, General Dynamics, Energetics Technology Center, Schlumberger, Frontier Technology Inc., and Dell.

Don’t miss out on a chance to engage members of the prognostics and health management research community during this enriching educational event. Registration fees are waived for PHM Consortium member representatives. For more information on the PHM Group's 2010 Fall Technical Review, please click here or contact Prof. Michael Pecht at pecht@calce.umd.edu.

Upcoming Webinars
Multiaxial Vibration Response of Electronic Assemblies
September 28, 2010, 11:00 am US EST
$300 for non-consortium members. Free for consortium members
On September 28, Dr. Abhijit Dasgupta will discuss CALCE's newest test system for exciting inertia load failures, and methodologies for assessing life expectancy in field applications. A veteran member of the CALCE faculty, Dr. Dasgupta conducts research on the mechanics of engineered, heterogeneous, active materials, with special emphasis on the micromechanics of constitutive and damage behavior. He has published over 150 journal articles and conference papers, presented over 20 short workshops and received six awards for his contributions in materials engineering research and education. For more information, please click here or contact Dr. Dasgupta at dasgupta@calce.umd.edu.

Power Electronics for Sustainable Energy Systems
November 9, 2009 11:00 am US EST
$300 for non-consortium members. Free for consortium members
On November 9, Prof. Patrick McCluskey will examine reliability issues related to power electronics used in energy storage applications. Prof. McCluskey is an Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Maryland, where he is also Assistant Director for Component Research at the CALCE Electronic Products and Systems Consortium. He is the principal investigator for topics related to computer-aided risk assessment of microelectronics, electronic packaging design for high temperature and high power applications, and commercial component insertion into high reliability applications. For more information, please click here or contact Dr. McCluskey at mcclupa@calce.umd.edu.