SOLDERING

What is the purpose

of soldering in
electronics?
WHAT IS SOLDERING

Soldering is the process of

joining metal leads, creating a
mechanical and electrical bond.
As shown in the figure, the lead
of the resistor and the pad of the
circuit board are mechanically
attached and electrically
connected.
WHAT IS REQUIRED

The tools needed for the

soldering process:
Safety glasses
Soldering iron
Solder
Wire cutter
Damp sponge
TOOLS

 Assemble the proper tools together.

WHY SAFETY GLASSES
It is important always to wear the
safety glasses during the whole
soldering process to protect
your eyes against boiling solder
particles that fly up while the
solder is melting and pieces of
leads that might fly in any
direction when they are cut.
WHAT IS A SOLDERING IRON

The soldering iron is

the tool that is used to
heat the joint. It has a
tip that is heated by an
internal heating
element.
SOLDERING IRONS

Pencil tip Temperature Controlled

WHAT IS SOLDER

Solder is the material that

melts on the joint attaching to
both the component lead and
the pad on the circuit board.
WHAT OCCURS WHEN SOLDER
MELTS
As the solder melts during the
soldering process, it attaches to
the component lead and the pad.
The flux flows into the joint
dissolving existing oxides on the
leads and preventing the formation
of new ones. This facilitates the
formation of a good soldering joint.
 WHAT ARE THE STEPS IN SOLDERING?

Step 1:
Prepare component for
mounting.
In this step you bend the leads of
the component at 90 degree angle
to fit into the holes of the circuit
board. You can do this with your
hand or with the help of pliers. Be
sure that the leads are bent at the
right distance from the body of the
component so they fit comfortably
in the holes on the board.
Step 2:

Mount component onto board

Mount component on board.
In this step you insert the leads of the
component into the holes on the board,
from the component side. The body of the
component should rest on the component
side of the board.
It is a common incorrect practice among
new students to install the component on
the soldering side (foil side) of the board
instead of the component side, or to install
the component away from the surface of
the board, instead of resting on the surface
of the board, as shown in the figure.
Step 3:
Bend component leads slightly.

After you have inserted the leads

of the component into the holes on
the board, you should bend the
component leads slightly to hold
the component in place while the
board is turned over to be
soldered.
Step 4.

Heat iron. Clean tip with damp sponge

Clean iron's tip.
Before you start soldering and after the
tip of the iron has heated up, the tip of
the iron should be cleaned on a damp
sponge and tinned, by melting apiece of
solder on the iron's tip and then wiping
the tip on the damp sponge again.
The tip of the iron should always have
an even shiny metal surface from the
solder. Each time oxide forms on the
tip, clean the tip on the damp sponge to
make it shiny again.
Step 5.
Apply heat.
In this step you apply heat to the joint to
be soldered by touching the tip of the
iron firmly against both the component
lead, and the pad on the board,
simultaneously. Allow about three
seconds or more for the joint to heat up
before applying the solder.
This is one of the most important steps
in the soldering process. If you do not
heat up the joint (lead and pad on the
board) sufficiently you will get a cold
soldering joint which will have to be
resoldered.
Step 6.

Apply Solder
Apply solder.
After the joint has heated up, apply
solder to the point where the lead
and the pad join. Apply enough
solder to create a "mountain " of
solder that attaches to both, the
lead and the pad, as shown in the
drawing of step 8. A common
problem among new students is to
apply too little or too much solder,
neither is good.
Step 7.
Remove solder.

After the solder has melted

on the joint forming a nice
connection as the one
shown in steps 8 and 9,
remove the solder wire from
the joint then remove the
iron.
Step 9:
Inspect the soldering joint.
After the joint has cooled off, visually
inspect the joint that you have created. It
should have a shiny and smooth surface
and it should attach to both the
component lead, and the pad on the
board. In the next transparency we will
see what good and bad soldering joints
look like.
If, during the inspection, you recognize
that your soldering is not good, you will
have to resolder the connection by
reheating the joint with the iron, until the
solder melts and then applying a little
more solder.
Step I0:

 Cut excess lead

Cut off component leads.
After you have soldered a joint the next
step is to cut off the excess component
lead using a wire cutter. Trim the lead
off the component as close to the solder
joint as possible. This is another
important step in the assembly process
that can not be avoided because
untrimmed component
leads might cause short circuits
between metallic traces on the board.
Good solder joint. As we have said before, a
good soldering joint has a shiny and smooth
surface and attaches to both the component
lead, and the pad on the board.
Cold solder join: You can recognize a cold
solder joint because it is dull (not shiny) and
irregular (not smooth). Cold solder joints do
not make good electrical connections and
should be resolder.
Solder not attached to lead: In this type of
defective soldering joint the solder is
attached to the pad of the board but not to
the lead of the component.
Solder not attached to pad. In
this type of defective soldering
joint the solder is attached to the
lead of the component but not to
the pad on the board.
Leads not trimmed.
This problem is caused by not
trimming the component leads
after soldering the joint.
Leads not trimmed.

Leads that are not trimmed pose

a potential problem because
they can be touching each other
or touching other parts of the
pad, producing short circuits
and damaging the components.
Never leave untrimmed leads
after the soldering is completed.
Solder bridge:

Solder bridge: A solder bridge is a

bridge made with solder that is
connecting two pads (or foil
traces) that should not be
connected. Sometimes solder
bridges are easy to detect and
other times they are so tiny that
they can only be detected with the
use of a magnifying glass.
Solder bridge:
Solder bridges can be eliminated
by melting them with the soldering
iron.
Many metals and their alloys can be used as solders. The following table gives
a quick overview of various solder materials and their applications:

SOLDER APPLICATIONS CHARACTERISTICS

Deforms easily.
Low temperature
Bismuth Needs Aggressive
soldering
fluxes
High temperature Toxic. Good tensile
Cadmium-Silver
applications strength

Cadmium-Zinc Soldering aluminum Toxic

Low temperature
Indium Deforms easily
soldering, wets glass
Good high
temperature
High temperature properties, good
Lead-Silver
applications fatigue strength.
Medium or low flow
properties
 SOLDER APPLICATIONS CHARACTERISTICS

Non-toxic. Good high

temperature
High temperature and properties. Better
Tin-Antimony food industry electrical conductivity
applications and strength than tin-
lead solders. Good
wetting.

Improved mechanical
properties over Tin-
Lead solders. Can not
Tin-Antimony-Lead General purpose. be used with zinc due
to brittle zinc-antimony
inter-metallic
compounds
Good process
General purpose, and
characteristics and the
Tin-Lead the most widely used
best understood
solders.
solders.
 SOLDER APPLICATIONS CHARACTERISTICS

Used for soldering

Non-toxic but
medical or high
expensive. Good high
Tin-Silver precision instruments.
temperature
High temperature
properties.
applications

Tin-Zinc Soldering aluminum

Zinc-Aluminum Soldering aluminum

Tin, lead and their alloys, due to their
low melting temperatures and wide
availability, are the most commonly
used solder materials. In fact, lead
has been used as a soldering metal
for water pipes (also made of lead)
even in Roman times, hence the
scientific name for lead, Plumbum.
Soldering process requires clean
surfaces so the base metal is well
exposed to the molten solder. During
soldering operation, fluxes does the
following:

1. Remove the oxide films on the base metal.

2. Momentarily prevent further formation of oxide
films.
3. Lower the surface tension of the solder to
promote wetting.
Fluxes need to be removed after the
soldering process since they tend to
be corrosive. If they are not properly
cleaned, they will eventually corrode
the metals being joined, leading to
product failures. For environmental
reasons, the least aggressive flux
should be chosen to do the job.
 Simple iron
For electrical and electronics work, a
low-power iron, a power rating
between 15 and 30 watts, is used.
Higher ratings are available, but do
not run at higher temperature;
instead there is more heat available
for making soldered connections to
things with large thermal capacity,
for example, a metal chassis.
 Portable iron
Small irons heated by a battery, or
by combustion of a gas such as
butane in a small self-contained
tank, can be used when electricity
is unavailable or cordless
operation is required. The
operating temperature of these
irons is not regulated directly; gas
irons may change power by
adjusting gas flow.
Butanes are highly flammable, colorless,
easily liquefied gases. The name butane
comes from the roots but- (from butyric
acid) and -ane.

The most common use of butane is as

lighter fuel for a common lighter or
butane torch.

Butane gas is sold bottled as a fuel for

cooking and camping. When blended with
propane and other hydrocarbons, it is
referred to commercially as LPG, for
liquefied petroleum gas.
Temperature-controlled soldering iron
Simple irons reach a temperature determined by
thermal equilibrium, dependent upon power input
and cooling by the environment and the materials it
comes into contact with
The iron temperature will drop when in contact with
a large mass of metal such as a chassis; a small
iron will lose too much temperature to solder a
large connection. More advanced irons for use in
electronics have a mechanism with a temperature
sensor and method of temperature control to keep
the tip temperature steady; more power is available
if a connection is large. Temperature-controlled
irons may be free-standing, or may comprise a head
with heating element and tip, controlled by a base
called a soldering station, with control circuitry and
temperature adjustment and sometimes display.
A soldering station, invariably
temperature-controlled, consists of an
electrical power supply, control circuitry
with provision for user adjustment of
temperature and display, and a soldering
iron or soldering head with a tip
temperature sensor. The station will
normally have a stand for the hot iron
when not in use, and a wet sponge for
cleaning. It is most commonly used for
soldering electronic components.
Another approach is to use magnetized
soldering tips which lose their magnetic
properties at a specific temperature, the
Curie point.

the temperature at which in some

substances such as iron there is a change
in the magnetic characteristics from
ferromagnetic to paramagnetic behavior.
As long as the tip is magnetic, it closes
a switch to supply power to the
heating element. When it exceeds the
design temperature it opens the
contacts, cooling until the temperature
drops enough to restore
magnetization.
 Stands
A soldering iron stand keeps the iron away
from flammable materials, and often also
comes with a cellulose sponge and flux
pot for cleaning the tip. Some soldering
irons for continuous and professional use
come as part of a soldering station, which
allows the exact temperature of the tip to
be adjusted, kept constant, and sometimes
displayed.
 Tips
Most soldering irons for electronics have
interchangeable tips, also known as bits, that vary in
size and shape for different types of work.[2] Pyramid
tips with a triangular flat face and chisel tips with a
wide flat face are useful for soldering sheet metal.
Fine conical or tapered chisel tips are typically used
for electronics work. Tips may be straight or have a
bend. Concave or wicking tips with a chisel face
with a concave well in the flat face to hold a small
amount of solder are available. Tip selection
depends on type of work.
Brazing—Joining metals structurally
by the use of a higher temperature
joining alloy than solder.

Welding —Melting two objects to be

joined into each other.
“Our greatest happiness does not depend
on the condition of life in which chance
has placed us, but is always the result of a
good conscience, good health, ccupation,
and freedom in all just pursuits”.

Thomas Jefferson