Test & Measurement |
Black Top Test detects counterfeit parts
Soldertec Global believes that it can detect all blacktopped counterfeit ICs through its new service called the ”Ultimate” Black Top Test. This new service uses the industry standard IDEA-STD-1010-A and then adds greater depth to the testing by looking at higher magnification and adding supplementary tests using advanced techniques.
Occasionally some counterfeit parts will have been pulled from old boards and sometimes some faulty parts will not have been scrapped at the production facility. However, the vast majority of counterfeit parts will have been remarked to convince the buyer to think that what they are purchasing is exactly what they had ordered.
“We are able to achieve this through using laboratory techniques which have never been used before. However we will not divulge how it is done as the counterfeiter may devise a measure to counteract our testing”, comments Soldertec Laboratory Manager, Dr Wayne Lam. “It is not magic, or if it is then it is £500,000 worth of magic, because that is the cost of all the equipment being used in the detection process.”
The “Ultimate” test regime involves 25 different tests and is completed in approximately a day. This depth of testing enables the laboratory to pick up all signs of prior use and remarking, with many of the techniques supporting each other and reaffirming earlier suspicions. If a suspect part is found and confirmation is required then the part can be de-capped and the die examined in fine detail to see if it really is what it purports to be.
