Accelerate Micro-CT for Consumer Electronics from Full Devices to Components with Tescan 

Overcome Teardown Challenges with Micro-CT for Consumer Electronics

Consumer electronics are densely packed with delicate components, making traditional inspection methods destructive and time-consuming. Critical defects — such as voids in solder joints, swelling in batteries, or leaks in waterproofing seals — can remain hidden until devices fail in use.

Tescan UniTOM systems enable fast, non-destructive Micro-CT for consumer electronics. From full-device scans to high-resolution component inspection, engineers can visualize internal structures in real time, detect hidden faults, and validate device integrity without disassembly.

Why Using Micro-CT for Non-Destructive Testing of Consumer Electronics Makes Sense

Inspect Full Devices and Zoom into Component-Level Defects

Visualize the complete internal layout of a 15-inch laptop without teardown. Target critical regions such as CPU BGA solder bumps with high-resolution volume-of-interest scans to detect hidden voids and ensure assembly quality.

Detect Battery Defects Inside Sealed Consumer Devices.

Analyze smartwatch batteries non-destructively to reveal electrode misalignment and irregular anode overhang. Identify hidden assembly flaws that compromise safety and long-term performance.

Expose Internal Battery Faults Without Breaking the Seal

Use Micro-CT to detect electrode misalignment and irregular anode overhang in smartwatch batteries. Identify hidden manufacturing issues that threaten performance and device safety.

Verify TSV Alignment with Submicron VOI Scans

Combine an overview scan of a microchip with a high-resolution 50-minute VOI scan. Assess through-silicon via geometry and alignment to ensure interconnect reliability.

Reveal Hidden Voids in BGA Solder Bumps

Use submicron VOI scans to detect internal voids inside individual solder joints. Pinpoint failure risks that compromise device reliability at the component level.

Inspect Wire Bonds in Microchips with High Resolution

Capture detailed 3D views of wire bonds to assess placement accuracy and detect defects. Ensure electrical connectivity and long-term reliability in semiconductor packaging.

Contents 

1. Root of the Problem

Why Internal Inspection of Devices Remains a Challenge

Consumer electronics are packed with small, tightly arranged components that are difficult to access once the device is assembled. Solder joints, batteries, pressure seals, and memory modules often fail in ways that cannot be detected from the outside.

Disassembly carries the risk of damaging fragile parts or changing the internal structure. Conventional imaging methods rarely provide true 3D context or access to components embedded deep inside.

To analyze these systems effectively, failure analysis and quality control teams need a method that combines full-system access with targeted resolution, dynamic testing, and real material contrast, without altering the sample.

2. Materials and Methods

This Workflow uses the Tescan UniTOM XL and UniTOM HR micro-CT systems for multi-scale inspection of consumer electronics.

Scanning process and tools include:

• Volume-of-Interest (VOIs™) scanning: fast overview scan followed by higher resolution zoom without re-positioning
• Dynamic CT for in-situ testing: environmental stages powered via slip rings for continuous acquisition under load, temperature, humidity, ...
• Real-time acquisition and processing using Aquila™ and Panthera™ software platforms
• Spectral CT mode: energy-resolved imaging based on K-edge contrast for material separation

3. Results and Discussion

Multi-Scale Micro-CT Reveals Hidden Defects in Consumer Electronics

Tescan UniTOM XL and UniTOM HR enabled both whole-device scans and high-resolution VOI™ inspections. A 15-inch laptop scan provided system-level context, while VOI scans revealed voids in CPU BGA solder bumps.

In sealed smartwatch batteries, Micro-CT exposed electrode misalignment and irregular anode overhang without disassembly. Microchip analysis combined overview scans with submicron VOI imaging to verify TSV alignment and detect voids inside individual solder bumps.

High-resolution scans of wire bonds captured placement accuracy and packaging defects, confirming connectivity risks. These results show how non-destructive Micro-CT delivers structural clarity and fault detection across devices and components — faster and with greater precision than traditional methods.