Circuit board testing through multispectral signal analysis

This paper describes a promising new approach for testing printed circuit boards that can greatly streamline the process through which test program sets (TPSs) are developed, and enhance their ability to detect catastrophic, marginal, and pending failures to a degree far beyond the capabilities of existing TPS technology. Multispectral analysis of applied and emitted signals and radiation ranging in frequency from DC to EHz allows for the examination of the internal structures of integrated circuits and other electronic components, as well as connectors, solder joints, and the printed circuit board itself. Such methods have been used successfully in applications as diverse as the detection of tumors in digital mammograms, to the discovery of foreign object debris in composite aircraft materials. Adaptation of these methods to PCB testing is a logical step in the evolution of TPS technology.