Electronic Testing in the Environmental Chamber

If you're reading this article, it means that electronic tests have impacted your life even if you don't know it.

In fact, all electronic products —from consumer electronics to components— must pass a rigorous series of tests to ensure their reliability, safety, and performance. 

These tests encompass a wide range of procedures designed to evaluate various aspects of electronic components, from their electrical characteristics to performance under different environmental conditions. In this article, we will focus specifically on electronic environmental testing, examining its purpose, the main types of tests, and the importance of environmental chambers.

What are Environmental Tests on Electronics Used For?

of Environmental testing electronics is crucial for determining how devices react to different environmental conditions, such as extreme temperatures, sudden or cyclical changes, and humidity levels. 

These tests help predict the behavior of electronic components in real-world situations, ensuring that they can operate correctly and safely under the most adverse conditions. 

The main objective is to identify design defects to improve the reliability of the final product.

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Types of Electronic Climatic Tests

There are several types of electronic environmental testing, each with its own purpose and field of application.

Below we will look at the three most common tests that are used in both consumer electronics and components. 

• Burn-In Test: Performed primarily on electronic boards, the Burn-In Test short-circuits all the board's components through climatic stress. The test temperature must be carefully controlled so as not to be too high and burn the chips, but high enough to simulate specific conditions.

The guidelines for performing the test can be found in the MIL-STD-883 , while for more information on the test you can read here.

• Testing Thermal Cycle: Thermal cycle testing involves cyclically heating and cooling electronic components according to specific procedures, such as those outlined in IEC 60068-2-14. This test is essential for evaluating a device's resistance to temperature changes, and we've covered it in more detail here.

• Humidity and Damp Heat Testing: Humidity is also an environmental factor to consider for the durability and performance of electronics. The humidity and damp heat test aims to verify precisely this. We've covered it in more detail here. Among the standards that define it are the aforementioned MIL-STD 883 and IEC 60068-2-30.

The Environmental Chamber for Electronic Testing

The laboratory instrument for performing electronic environmental tests is called an environmental chamber.

Environmental chambers belong to the family of climatic chambers and are specialized in extreme climate tests, that is, they reach significant temperature levels both positive and negative.

The environmental chamber consists of a compartment completely isolated from the outside and equipped with advanced technologies that allow you toset, regulate and monitor precise levels of temperature and relative humidity.

To perform electronic tests, the sample to be tested is placed inside the chamber and the temperature and relative humidity are set for a predefined period of time. In the case of the cycle test, a so-called dynamic test , which automatically performs all test phases.

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The FDM Environmental Chamber for Electronic Testing

The FDM – Environment Makers has all the requirements to perform the tests we have described in this article.

Its stillFACE ensures precision and reliability in static tests while the programmer revoFACE allows the operator to set up a wide range of dynamic tests.

For further information, please do not hesitate to contact us.

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Reference Standards

• IEC 60068 series — Environmental testing: a complete set of climatic and mechanical methods for qualifying electronic components and equipment.
• JEDEC JESD22-A101/A104/A110 — Semiconductor reliability: damp heat steady state, temperature cycling and HAST for plastic package qualification.
• IPC-TM-650 — Test Methods Manual: Standardized methods for characterizing PCBs, laminates, vias, and surface finishes.
• IEC 61000-4 series — Electromagnetic compatibility: Immunity to ESD, EFT, surge, radiated and conducted RF.
• AEC-Q100 — Stress Test Qualification for Integrated Circuits: automotive tier-1 requirements for ICs intended for grade 0/1/2/3.
• IEC 61340-5-1 — Electrostatics: Protection of electronic devices from electrostatic phenomena, ESD control program requirements.

Authoritative Sources

• JEDEC Solid State Technology Associationpublishes the JESD22 series for semiconductor reliability qualification.
• IPC – Association Connecting Electronics Industries. Maintains IPC-TM-650 test methods and electronic assembly quality standards.
• AEC – Automotive Electronics Council. Issues AEC-Q100/Q101/Q104/Q200 reference standards for car qualification.

Frequently Asked Questions about Electronic Testing in Environmental Chambers

Difference between burn-in and HALT?

Burn -in is a manufacturing process that stresses all parts at high temperatures (typically 85-125°C) with bias applied for 24-168 hours, with the goal of eliminating infant mortality (bathtub curve left side): parts with latent defects fail before shipping. It is a 100% process control that adds unit cost but improves batch PPM. HALT (Highly Accelerated Life Test) is a product engineering technique during the development phase: progressive temperature stresses (-60/+150°C), 6-sigma random vibration (20-60 Grms), and combined thermo-mechanical stresses are applied to a small number of samples until the product's destructive limits are found. The goal is to uncover design weaknesses and apply corrective measures before production. HASS (Highly Accelerated Stress Screen) applies 50% of the HALT stresses as a post-production screen, superior to traditional burn-in in terms of time and fault coverage. HALT/HASS chambers require thermal rates >= 60 C/min and an integrated pneumatic vibration table.

How do you conduct a JEDEC temperature cycling?

JESD22-A104 defines Conditions B (-55 / +125 C), C (-65 / +150 C), G (-40 / +125 C) typical for IC and module qualification. Profile: controlled down ramp (typically 15 C/min), dwell at the extreme temperature 10-15 min for thermal equilibration of the package, up ramp 15 C/min, opposite dwell 10-15 min. A complete cycle lasts approximately 60 min. AEC-Q100 Grade 1 automotive qualification requires 1000 cycles -40/+125 C, Grade 0 requires 2000 cycles -40/+150 C. The test accelerates failure mechanisms: solder joint fatigue (Coffin-Manson model with exponent m=2.5), mold compound delamination, silicon cracking due to CTE mismatch, bonding wire breakage. After cycling, functional electrical tests are performed on each parameter, including X-rays to verify delamination and shear tests on solder joints. The chamber must guarantee uniformity of +/- 3°C in the usable volume, a reproducible thermal rate cycle by cycle, and continuous recording with an audit trail.

What is the HAST test for accelerated humidity?

HAST (Highly Accelerated Temperature and Humidity Stress Test) according to JESD22-A110E applies conditions of 130 C / 85% RH in an autoclave at 2.3 bar absolute pressure for 96 h (severe condition) or 110 C / 85% RH for 264 h (extended condition). The electrical bias is applied to simulate operating conditions. The acceleration compared to the traditional 85 C / 85% RH (1000 h JEDEC A101) is approximately 10-20x according to Peck model. The test reveals: (1) corrosion of Al wire bonding due to humidity ingress; (2) delamination of the mold compound / die interface; (3) metal migration between adjacent pins; (4) degradation of silicon passivation. HAST is mandatory for automotive qualification AEC-Q100 Grade 0/1 and for plastic packaging MSL 3-5. The chamber requires PED certified autoclave, controlled DI water injection,RHredundant

What stresses should be combined for automotive qualification?

AEC-Q100 defines a pool of 41 tests grouped into 7 groups: Group A accelerated environment (HAST, AC, THB); Group B accelerated lifetime (HTOL, ELFR, EDR); Group C package integrity (TC, PTC, HTSL, AC); Group D die fabrication (EM, TDDB, HCI, NBTI); Group E electrical verification (PC, PRE); Group F defect-oriented (IDDQ, FG); Group G cavity package (MS, VFV). The typical sequence includes three legs: Leg 1 precondition + HAST 96h + electric; Leg 2 precondition + TC 1000x -40/+125 C + electric; Leg 3 precondition + HTSL 500-1000h @ 150 C + electric. Each leg requires 77 pieces from 3 different lots. The preconditioning simulates real assembly: bake at 125°C, MSL-specific moisture soak, and three reflows at 260°C. The qualification test board has standard Jedec dimensions with daisy chains for corona resistance and capacitance for parametric measurements. The full qualification costs 50-200 kEUR and lasts 6-9 months.

When thermal stress and humidity test not only the electronic components but also the cells that power them, dedicated configurations are required: for these needs we have developed the battery test chamber, designed for EUCAR and UN 38.3 tests on cells, modules and complete packs.