[IEEE CAS04/ED15/EP21/PHO36 Distinguished Lecture] Reliability of Advanced Circuit Boards
IEEE EDS Toronto is proud to invite you to a seminar by Dr. Tan Cher Ming of Chang Gung University.
Join us Monday, 26 January 2026 at 4PM (ET) on University of Toronto. Refreshments will be served.
Abstract:
Printed circuit boards (PCBs) are fundamental to all electronic systems, providing component integration, electrical interconnection, mechanical support, and
thermal management. Despite their critical role, PCB reliability has historically received far less attention than that of electronic components, particularly active devices. This gap is partly due to the perception of PCBs as mature, supporting structures rather than primary reliability drivers.
However, PCB technologies continue to evolve, especially for mission‑critical applications operating under high temperature, high humidity, or radiation‑intensive environments. In these conditions, PCB failure mechanisms can significantly influence overall system reliability, yet published studies remain limited.
This talk will present key PCB failure mechanisms and highlight how PCB‑level degradation can propagate to system‑level failures, drawing on insights from my recent research. The goal is to encourage engineers to treat PCBs as integral elements of system reliability analysis, particularly in high‑reliability and safety‑critical applications.
Date and Time
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- 35 St George St
- Toronto, Ontario
- Canada M5S 1A4
- Building: Galbraith Building
- Room Number: 202
- Starts 20 December 2025 05:00 AM UTC
- Ends 26 January 2026 05:00 AM UTC
- No Admission Charge
Speakers
Dr. Tan Cher Ming of Chang Gung University
Biography:
Dr. Tan earned his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Toronto in 1992. With a decade of industry experience in electronic reliability, he transitioned to academia, serving as a faculty member at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) from 1996 to 2014. Later, he was invited to join Chang Gung University in Taiwan, where he established and directs the Research Center on Reliability Sciences and Technologies. Currently, he holds the position of Professor in the Electronic Department at Chang Gung University and serves as Honorary Chair Professor at Ming Chi University of Technology, Taiwan.
Dr. Tan's extensive contributions to the reliability field include over 400 international journal and conference papers, along with numerous keynotes and invited talks at prestigious international conferences. He holds 21 patents and a copyright on reliability software. Additionally, he has authored 14 books and book chapters focusing on reliability. He was also invited to give tutorials in various international conferences, such as IEEE RAMS 2026, IEEE EDTM2026, IEEE IRPS 2025, IEEE IPFA etc. His editorial roles include serving as an Editor for IEEE Transactions on Device and Materials Reliability (TDMR), and Series Editor for SpringerBrief in Reliability, among others. He is also a member of the advisory panel for Elsevier Publishing Group and Applied Physics Letters, Electronic Devices.
Recognized for his expertise, Dr. Tan has been named one of the top 2% scientists worldwide by Stanford University for four consecutive years (2021-2025) and received a life achievement award for being among the top 0.15% of world scientists from 1961 to 2024. He also was named a 2025 TopScholar by ScholarGPS, ranked as top 0.05% of scholars globally in the field of semiconductor reliability based on lifetime scholarly impact.
Dr. Tan is a Distinguished Lecturer for the IEEE Electronic Device Society on reliability since 2007. Furthermore, he has been honored as a Fellow of the Institute of Engineers, Fellow of Singapore, the Singapore Quality Institute, and Fellow of the International Association of Advanced Materials in Sweden. He also recently received a Scientist Medal from the International Association of Advanced Materials, Sweden. He was elected to be the President of Taiwan Reliability Technology Association in 2024.
Dr. Tan's dedication to quality and reliability extends to his role as a reviewer for various international journals and his receipt of the Ishikawa-Kano Quality Award in Singapore in 2014. He was invited to join Sigma Xi, the Scientists Research Honor Society where Albert Einstein, Dirac Fermi, etc belonged to. His research interests encompass reliability and failure physics modeling of electronic components and systems, finite element modeling of materials degradation, statistical modeling of engineering systems, nano-materials and devices reliability, and prognosis & health management of engineering systems. He also involves in Biomedical physics and engineering with several inventions in medical instrumentation.
Light refreshments will be provided.