Image Analysis for the Microelectronics Industry
Electronic assemblies fail at their interfaces: a plated via that is a few microns thin, an intermetallic layer that grew one reflow too far, a void under a power die, a particle that landed on a wafer. Clemex replaces hand-placed cursors and visual chart comparison with automated image analysis, so plating thickness, layer growth, void percentage and particle counts are measured the same way on every coupon, by every operator, with the raw data and field images retained behind each result.
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Clemex image analysis for microelectronics, in under a minute
Microelectronics analyses
Measure the features that board, package and wafer specifications call for with Clemex Vision and the AI-powered Clemex Studio. Analyze your images manually, semi-automatically or fully automatically, and follow the link on each card through to the module.
PCB · HDI · Microvia · Through-Hole
Copper Plating & Via Thickness
Barrel, knee, surface and wrap copper measured on the microsection as a full thickness distribution rather than three operator-chosen points, with minimum, maximum, mean and deviation reported per hole. Dielectric and prepreg thickness are measured on the same field.
SAC305 · SnPb · Reflow · Wave
Solder Joints & IMC Layers
Intermetallic layer thickness at the pad interface, Cu₆Sn₅ and Cu₃Sn scallop height, fillet geometry, wetting angle and joint area, measured identically on every joint so reflow profile and multiple-reflow studies compare on numbers instead of impressions.
ENIG · ENEPIG · Immersion Sn · OSP
Surface Finish & Plating Stacks
Each layer of a finish stack measured independently on the cross-section, gold over palladium over nickel, tin over copper, nickel barrier over lead frame, with per-layer statistics and total stack height reported in one pass.
Si · SiC · GaN · Sapphire
Wafer Defect Detection
Etch pit density, defect count, individual and total defect area, and automatic worst-field identification across the scanned wafer surface. Motorized stage scanning logs the fields covered, so a density figure is tied to a known inspected area.
BGA · Die Attach · Sintered Ag · IGBT
Voids & Porosity
Void area percent, void count, largest void and its position within the joint, measured on solder balls, die-attach layers, sintered silver and thick-film prints. Grey level separates true voids from polishing debris and second-phase particles.
Chips · Interposers · Fine-Line PCB
Line Width & Spacing
Vertically aligned plating lines and conductor traces detected automatically, with width, pitch, spacing and edge-to-edge variation measured across every line in the field. Trace cross-sections add trapezoid geometry, etch factor and undercut.
Magnet Wire · Coax · Harness · Crimps
Insulation & Concentricity
Concentricity and wall thickness of foam and solid insulators over a conductor, measured radially around the full circumference so the thinnest wall is found rather than sampled. Crimp cross-sections add compaction, void area and contact width.
Cu Foil · Lead Frames · Bond Wire
Grain Size in Copper
Grain size in electrodeposited and rolled copper, lead frame alloys and bond wire, reported as an ASTM grain size number with the distribution behind it. AI detection and segmentation handle twins and incomplete boundaries that stop threshold-only routines.
Sn-Ag-Cu · Ag₃Sn · Die Cast Housings
Phase & Dendrite Structure
Area fraction and size distribution of Ag₃Sn and Cu₆Sn₅ particles in the solder bulk, plus dendrite arm spacing as a cooling-rate indicator on cast and solidified structures. Trained detection and segmentation separate phases that share a grey level.
Solder Paste · Ag Sinter Paste · Fillers
Powder Size & Shape
Equivalent circle diameter, aspect ratio, circularity and the full size distribution of solder paste powder, sinter pastes and conductive fillers, with satellites and agglomerates quantified. Powder is dispersed as a monolayer before imaging.
Cleanrooms · Optics · Sensor Assembly
Precision Cleanliness
Particles counted per size class, normalized to the reference area and compared against the target cleanliness level, with fallout designation applied automatically. Metallic, non-metallic and fiber discrimination is done by the software.
Connectors · Housings · Power Modules
Component Cleanliness
Residual particles extracted from housings, connectors and cooling circuits counted and sized on the filter membrane, with the largest metallic particle and size-class table reported, and conductive fibers flagged separately for short-circuit risk.
Lead Frames · Plating · Clemex CMT
Microhardness Mapping
Automated Vickers and Knoop indent placement, detection and diagonal measurement on plating, lead frame stock, stamped contacts and solder, turning hardness traverses and small-load surveys into an unattended run with the profile curve.
Key features
Built for Repeatable Electronics Quality Control and Failure Analysis
Traceable Raw Data for Audit
Every measured object is linked to its field and stage coordinate. Any row in the data browser sends the stage back to that exact location, so a customer, auditor or failure-analysis review can be walked from a reported value to the feature it came from.
Clemex VisionAI Detection & Segmentation Without Coding
Clemex Studio trains a detection and segmentation model by annotation instead of threshold tuning, which is what makes a sub-micron intermetallic layer, a nickel barrier against copper and a void against dark epoxy measurable at all. Trained models load directly into Vision for production runs.
Clemex StudioOperator-Independent Results
The routine, not the analyst, decides where to measure and what counts as the feature. When a plating thickness or void percentage decides whether a lot ships, reproducibility between operators, shifts and sites is the whole point.
Clemex VisionNIST-Traceable Auto Calibration
Each objective is calibrated automatically against a NIST-traceable stage micrometer, giving accurate and traceable measurements at the high magnifications thin-layer work demands, without operator judgement, and giving the calibration record an audit expects.
Stage Micrometer SlideAutomated Stage Scanning
Motorized stage integration scans defined field patterns across wafers, membranes and multi-up coupon mounts, logging coverage and field count per run. For defect density and worst-field reporting, defensible sampling is the measurement.
Motorized Microscope StagesMosaic Reconstruction
Adjacent fields are stitched into a seamless mosaic, so features spanning multiple fields, a full via barrel, a complete BGA row, a whole die-attach interface, are measured as single objects rather than truncated at field edges.
Clemex VisionMulti-Analysis, One System
Any number of distinct analyses run on the same installation, so plating thickness, IMC growth, voids, particle counts and hardness are not separate purchases or separate benches. Each analysis ships as part of the routine library or is built to your specification.
Clemex VisionStandard-Referenced Reporting
Reports generate automatically after each run and are fully customizable: logo, part, lot and coupon identification, captured fields, distribution graphs, statistics and specification-compliant result tables in one locked PDF.
Clemex VisionMaterials & hardware covered
From Wafer and Substrate to Finished Assembly
Clemex analysis modules are deployed across the electronics supply chain, in semiconductor fabs and packaging houses, printed circuit board fabricators and EMS assembly plants, connector and lead frame stampers, plating and surface finish shops, power module and passive component manufacturers, cable and magnet wire producers, and independent failure analysis and accredited test laboratories serving consumer, automotive electronics, avionics, telecom and medical device programs.
Tailored systems
A Complete, Integrated Analysis System
Clemex provides the complete solution, software, hardware and service, configured to your specific analysis needs.
Tailored Hardware Integration
Typically an inverted or upright metallurgical microscope, a motorized stage and a high-resolution camera, selected to fit your analysis needs, with high-magnification objectives and DIC or brightfield-darkfield options for thin layers. Clemex ensures seamless integration of all components, with on-site installation and training included.
SEM & Third-Party Image Import
Import images from SEMs, existing micrograph libraries and other acquisition systems. This matters in microelectronics: intermetallic scallops, sub-micron finish layers and fine voids are resolved on SEM, and Clemex analyzes those images without proprietary hardware requirements or vendor lock-in.
Routine Creation Service
Provide your analysis specifications, measurement parameters and reporting needs, whether that is a customer drawing, an acceptance class or an in-house method, and our specialists will configure and validate the complete routine in the software for you.
Ready to automate your electronics materials lab?
Talk to a Clemex specialist and see Clemex running on your own microsections, wafers or membranes. On-site demonstrations available.
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