Accelerated life testing in electronics: theoretical foundations, methodologies and implementation

Nowadays, there is an increasing demand for improved quality and reliability due to increasing system complexity and increasing demands from customers. Accelerated Life Testing is a quick way to provide information on the life distribution of materials and products. By subjecting the test units to conditions more severe than those at normal usage, the test time can be highly reduced. Estimates of life at normal stress levels are obtained by extrapolating the available information through a reasonable acceleration model. Accelerated life testing has mostly been used to measure reliability and nowadays it is increasingly used for improvement of quality. This thesis addresses the imperative of accurately forecasting the service life of electronic devices through the methodology of Accelerated Life Testing (ALT). By integrating physics-of-failure considerations with rigorous statistical modelling, this work seeks not only to predict field performance but also to inform design and process improvements that enhance robustness and reduce costs.