Rochester Electronics EMEA’s technical gross sales supervisor, Ken Greenwood, discusses how firms can struggle counterfeiting and guarantee a certified provide
Counterfeit semiconductors are available many disguises. The definition of a counterfeit is ‘an imitation meant to be handed off fraudulently or deceptively as real, for revenue’. On the earth of semiconductors, counterfeits embody:
• Non-functional or scrap product, re-marked nearly as good and resold
• Second-hand authentic elements, re-marked, repacked however declare to be new
• Practical, substandard product bought by the counterfeiter, re-marked and resold as a better spec product at an elevated value
• Unauthorized purposeful copies
• Real authentic elements with cast traceability and authenticity documentation
Counterfeiters have moved past fraudulent copies of producers’ logos and IC packages with no die inside, that may be caught by AS6081 visible testing. Counterfeiters now have subtle operations, using impeccable part finishes, plus seemingly excellent paperwork trails, because the potential beneficial properties for counterfeiters are huge.
High quality doesn’t imply reliability
What are the dangers of utilizing counterfeits? Dangers to purchasers are many and the misunderstanding that ‘testing’ can present a 100 per cent assure of high quality is all too frequent. The important thing query right here is: which exams? Many anti-counterfeiting measures solely cowl sure ranges of visible, re-marking and x-ray testing. Whereas this can catch many counterfeits, extra subtle examples will not be recognized.
Some examples of when counterfeiting might result in compromised long-term reliability:
• In re-marking circumstances, the method of etching again the unique exterior markings with aggressive chemical substances or mechanical grinders can lead to inner bond or substrate harm. Chemical residues from the cleansing course of slowly enter and contaminate the machine, inflicting bond-pad or bond-wire failures
• Non-authorized dealing with and storage that’s not in compliance with AS6496 can result in moisture ingress and ESD harm. This threat is feasible for any product bought by means of non-authorized, routes no matter date-code
• The method of recovering beforehand used semiconductors from previous PCBs can lead to catastrophic warmth and mechanical harm. Restoration of the IC from the PCB is often the final step of a scrap path, which incorporates the product’s prior use, and a return-for-recovery route by means of an uncontrolled storage atmosphere. Publicity to extreme humidity, water and salt is frequent. This course of produces an genuine used product with questionable reliability
Third-party testing can by no means assure to determine each counterfeit and can’t supply a assure of product reliability.
What does 100 per cent approved and examined actually imply?
All product supplied by a certified supply has been 100 per cent fault-coverage examined and is assured to satisfy the unique part producer’s (OCM) datasheet. Extra crucially, it’s assured to satisfy their reliability requirements. Merchandise have been absolutely examined by the OCM or, within the case of ongoing manufacturing of discontinued product, by a certified obsolescence accomplice. Companions are approved to make use of the unique check packages to supply a full assure of high quality. The final word instrument within the struggle in opposition to counterfeits is authorization.
Approved after-market suppliers and producers, as recognized by the US Division of Protection (DFARS), similar to Rochester Electronics, present a 100 per cent assured and counterfeit-free supply for active-shortage and out of date semiconductors.
Completed units saved and provided by approved sources are assured to return from the OCM and to have been saved in-line with the OCM’s specs. These merchandise are 100 per cent conformance assured.
As a licensed producer, Rochester Electronics can supply ongoing manufacturing of out of date units. Constructed from known-good die, these merchandise are examined utilizing the OCM’s check procedures and, in lots of circumstances, the unique check gear. Every of those elements are 100 per cent compliant to the unique specs.
Rochester Electronics is permitted by OCMs to mark merchandise with the unique half numbers and the present date-codes. Many units are nonetheless in manufacturing 20 years after the unique discontinuations.
www.rocelec.com
