Soldering

Dennis YuanFall 2013

What is it for?

• Making good conductive contact between a component and the PCB

• Through-hole parts• Surface mount parts

What do I need?

• Soldering iron• Solder• Flux• Sponge and water

Premise

• Heat up soldering iron• Apply flux• Heat up PCB pad with soldering iron• Hold solder between soldering iron

and pad until it flows• Remove solder and iron, allowing the

joint to cool

Common mistakes

• Using too little or too much solder• Making the iron too hot or leaving

the soldering iron on (can cause damage)

• Not allowing the solder to flow• Trying to remove solder, but ripping

up the traces instead

Sidenote on parts selection

• Do not pick super tiny surface mount parts

• Do not pick parts without pins

Not sure if resistor or dust…

Some tips

• Do continuity checks!• Use flux (only need a little bit)• Take care of the soldering irons• It takes some practice