Vapor Phase One
⚠️Training Zone Ahead⚠️
To safely use the following equipment, you must receive training by lab64 Staff prior to individual use. To get trained, please attend one of our Office Hours sessions↗. Estimated Length of Training: 25 minutes.
Introduction
The Vapor Phase One
The Vapor Phase One is a vapor phase soldering machine that is a easy and reliable approach to soldering populated boards. Our unit is located in the back of Packard 129 on the small counter under the vent hood
Preparation
1.
Prepare your PCB for use. Make a jig of the appropriate size for your PCB using copper clad laminate (CCL) and blue painters tape as shown in the adjacent photo.
2.
Place your board in the jig and ensure that it fits snugly with no wiggling.
3.
Align your stencil so that the holes perfectly overlay on top of the pads. Tape the stencil in place aong one side using painters tape.
4.
Next, prepare the solder paste. If you don’t see it on the counter, come find Jeff and he will provide you some.
Using a wooden dowel, apply a small layer of paste to a putty knife along the entire tip’s edge.
5.
With a pressing and sliding motion, spread the solder over the holes in the stencil by holding the putty knife at the angle shown.
6.
Carefully lift the board out of the jig—make sure you don’t inadvertently smudge any of the paste that has been placed on the pads
⚠️
If you are done pasting your board(s), it is time to clean up! Return any excess paste into the jar. IMPORTANT: Make sure you close the lid of the solder paste!
You can use isopropyl alcohol (IPA) to clean up the putty knife, wooden stick, counter and stencil (a small brush can found near the solder paste to help get in the holes of the stencil). Place any paper towels into the plastic container marked "SOLDER WASTE".
7.
Take your parts and begin to populate your board. Use of the microscope in the rework room may assist you if your eyes are not up to the challenge. It is a delicate operation, using tweezers to gently place the component on top of the solder paste without smearing the paste around. A VERY GENTLE tap on the component can help to seat it a little bit to prevent it from sliding off during transport or reflow. Don’t press so hard that the paste squooshes out beneath the component.
Getting To Reflow
1.
Turn on the vapor phase soldering machine.
2.
When it boots up to the main screen, swipe to the last (third) page and at the bottom, select the profile you want. In our lab, unless you have your own special solder paste and/or application, you will want to use the last profile in the list, which is the “custom_” profile.
3.
Press the SET button.
You will see a temperature profile curve shown on the second page.
4.
Swipe to the first page on the screen and press the Open Lid Button.
The lid and tray will rise up.
5.
After it rises, place the board gently on the tray. As you can see from the picture, the board is placed near the green/white thermocouple, and the thermocouple wire should be adjusted so that the tip of the wire is just above the highest components you have placed on your board
6.
Close the lid with the Close Lid button.
7.
Hit the Start Reflow button to begin!
Working The Oven
The Heating cycle will now begin to get the Galden 230 up to boiling.
The second screen which shows the temperature profile gives an up-to-date account of the board temperature and the Galden temperature. Around the time the board reaches around 95 degrees C, you will see a blue curve tracking the temperature.
It will track fairly closely, using stepper motors to raise and lower the bed in the vapor chamber. Note that, after about 6 minutes, during the cooling phase, the temperature will not track perfectly (it is a little slow to cool compared to the profile); see attached picture--this is OK.
The entire process takes about 10 minutes from start to finish, and if you have selected (or not touched) the default of Standard on screen three when starting, you will be allowed to open the lid when the galden temperature reaches 80 degrees C.
1.
After opening the lid, carefully lift the board out. You may use the white gloves which are in the drawer, in case the board is too hot for you.
⚠️
Next, close the lid as soon as you are finished -- Galden loss due to evaporation is not cheap!
2.
Finally, turn off the unit when completed. Make sure to clean off your board with a bit of isopropyl alcohol (IPA) and a brush.