Typical failure modes include:
- Cracked solder fillets
- Intermittent electrical connections
- Open circuits
- Early fatigue failure
- Fractures during vibration or thermal cycling
This is especially dangerous in:
- Military electronics
- Space systems
- Aircraft avionics
- Medical implants
- High-vibration environments
Where does it commonly occur?
Gold embrittlement is most likely when:
- Thick gold plating is used
- Leads/connectors are not properly de-golded before soldering
- Small solder volumes are used
- Rework adds repeated thermal cycles
- Fine-pitch/high-density assemblies are present
