Electronic – What cause a PCB track to break

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I have assembled 1000 pcs of PCB. 6/1000pcs have track broken (bottom layer) as pointed in the attached picture. The pad with track connected to an electrolytic capacitor. There are two other capacitors have the same footprints with not track break.

The assembly using wave soldering machine. Temperature 260 C.
The board is FR4 1.6mm thickness 1/2 Oz. ENIG surface finish.
What could be the cause to avoid track break when go to 300,000 pcs??

Broken Track

Capacitor with the Pad

Best Answer

Unreliable traces are usually a problem with the PCB itself, not caused by soldering.

So, review your PCB production data (Gerber files) and make sure the copper of that traces continues under the ring of the via. Look at the ring of a board that's not soldered with a strong magnification (microscope?) to see whether there's anything suspicious. Also, look at the whole trace, not just the ring. If that't the case, contact the company that prints your PCBs, and explain the situation.

I really don't see any other reason the trace would break if it was not badly executed by the PCB factory.