This chapter covers the steps and tests that are important to produce quality parts in heat treating. The quality tests discussed include hardness tests, such as Brinell, Rockwell, and microhardness tests. The chapter also examines tensile testing, toughness testing, optical metallography, and nondestructive testing. The chapter concludes by discussing in-process inspections and the final inspection.

Recent trends in electronic packaging, including the growing use of 3D designs and heterogeneous integration, are greatly adding to the complexity of isolating faults in semiconductor products. This chapter reviews the latest IC packaging and integration solutions and assesses the readiness level of fault isolation tools and techniques. It examines the capabilities, limitations, and optimization potential of x-ray tomography and magnetic field imaging, describes various approaches for optical fault isolation, and compares and contrasts pre-OFI sample preparation methods. The chapter also explains how time-domain and electro-optical terahertz pulse reflectometry are used to find shorts and opens in ICs and how challenges related to heterogenous integration may be met through design for testability (DFT) and built-in self-test (BIST) accommodations and the use of passive interposers.

This chapter summarizes critical gaps and long-term needs in failure analysis technology as it relates to logic and memory devices and IC packages. It assesses the impact of vertical integration, new materials, and expansion in the third dimension on volume analysis, sample preparation and measurement methods, and cross-sectioning and imaging.

This article presents best practices for the metallographic preparation of specimens produced via thermal spray coating methods. It outlines typical metallographic preparation process flow, highlighting important considerations for obtaining a clear and representative specimen suitable for characterization via examination techniques, such as optical or electron microscopy. The process flow includes preliminary resin infiltration, sectioning, mounting, grinding, and polishing. To aid in the identification and resolution of common issues during subsequent specimen analysis, the article presents common issues, along with causes and mitigation strategies. It describes the processes involved in the interpretation of the thermal spray coating microstructure.

Thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) are applied using thermal spray coating (TSC) processes to components that are internally cooled and operated in a heated environment. The TSC microstructures are prone to interactions with common metallographic procedures that may result in artifacts and misinterpretation of the TSC microstructure. This article aims to aid in identifying metallographic TSC artifacts, specifically in the air plasma spray zirconia-based TBC, including both of its common constituents, the bond coating and the top coating. Artifacts that result from specific sectioning and mounting practices, as well as from different polishing times, are presented. Additionally, the article discusses the factors in optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy that affect microstructure interpretation.

Abradable coatings (such as Ni-4Cr-4Al/bentonite) are used throughout jet engines, primarily as sacrificial coatings into which moving components wear. This article presents the Accepted Practice for sample preparation of abradable coatings for metallographic analysis, based on round robin testing by several laboratories.

Molybdenum thermal spray coatings are used in aerospace and other industries for wear resistance applications. Metallographic sample preparation of molybdenum coatings presents unique challenges. The purpose of the investigation described in this article is to determine Accepted Practices for sample preparation to better understand the process related microstructures of thermal spray molybdenum powders. The committee followed a round robin approach to assess metallographic sample preparation by a variety of laboratories. The article summarizes the results of the committee’s work.

This article provides an overview of how to use the scanning electron microscope (SEM) for imaging integrated circuits. The discussion covers the principles of operation and practical techniques of the SEM. The techniques include sample mounting, sample preparation, sputter coating, sample tilt and image composition, focus and astigmatism correction, dynamic focus and image correction, raster alignment, and adjusting brightness and contrast. The article also provides information on achieving ultra-high resolution in the SEM. It concludes with information on the general characteristics and applications of environmental SEM.

This chapter is a collection of tables listing: cast alloy designations of Aluminum Association, along with their general applications; the chemical compositions of the frequently used alloys for gravity permanent molds, low-pressure permanent molds, squeeze castings, and die castings; the typical tensile properties of die cast alloys; and the designations of different heat treatments and their description. The tables also list the temperatures and times of typical heat treatment cycles for different permanent mold cast alloys; typical components in sand, gravity, and low-pressure permanent mold castings and die castings, the functional requirements of each process, and the corresponding suitable alloys and heat treatments; and alloys that are high vacuum die cast for structural castings. The chapter also presents examples of photomicrographs of some alloys cast by different processes.

This chapter discusses the context in which metallography is used and some of the challenges of analyzing three-dimensional structures from a two-dimensional perspective. It describes the hierarchical nature of metals, the formation of grain boundaries, and the notable characteristics of microstructure. It explains how microstructure can be represented qualitatively by points, lines, surfaces, and volumes associated to a large extent with grain contact, and how qualitative features (including grains) can be quantified based on cross-sectional area, volume fraction, density, distribution, and other such metrics.

This chapter discusses the practices and procedures used to reveal and record macrostructural features such as hardening depth, weld thickness, crack size, porosity, hot folds, and machining and tooling marks. It provides information on sectioning, sample location, orientation, surface grinding, and etching. It describes macrographic etchants and the features they reveal along with common etching problems and how to avoid them. It explains how to evaluate etching results and how they can be improved using remedial processes such as light grinding. It also discusses photographic reproduction, lighting, and image enhancement techniques.

This chapter explains how to prepare material samples for optical microscopy, the most common method for characterizing the microstructure of cast iron and steel. It provides information on sectioning, mounting, polishing, etching, and recording. It describes the nature of surface roughness, the factors that contribute to it, and its effect on image quality. It discusses the use of fixturing and holding devices, includes photographic examples of polishing defects and drying marks, and provides an overview of micrographic etchants and the features they reveal. It also describes the steps involved in replicating part surfaces.

This chapter discusses the use of electron microscopy in metallographic analysis. It explains how electrons interact with metals and how these interactions can be harnessed to produce two- and three-dimensional images of metal surfaces and generate crystallographic and compositional data as well. It discusses the basic design and operating principles of scanning electron microscopes, transmission electron microscopes, and scanning transmission electron microscopes and how they are typically used. It describes the additional information contained in backscattered electrons and emitted x-rays and the methods used to access it, namely wavelength and energy dispersive spectroscopy and electron backscattering diffraction techniques. It also describes the role of focused ion beam milling in sample preparation and provides information on atom probes, atomic force microscopes, and laser scanning microscopes.

This chapter provides guidelines for conducting metallographic evaluations and offers suggestions on how to effectively report the results. It explains how the approach depends on the objective of the evaluation, which is usually to measure a structural feature, test a hypothesis, or investigate structure-related effects. The chapter addresses each case, tailoring its guidelines and suggestions accordingly.

This chapter covers the early studies and various discoveries by metals researchers to study the internal structure of metals. The topics covered include light microscopy, phase diagrams, X-ray diffraction, principles of precipitation hardening, and dislocation theory.

This chapter covers the biographies and literary and research work of pioneers in metals research, namely Henry Marion Howe, Albert Sauveur, Isaiah (Zay) Jeffries, Paul Dyer Merica, Edgar C. Bain, Samuel Leslie Hoyt, and Francis L. VerSnyder.