I have a post about my setup [1]. The main secret is a metallurgical microscope: unlike most microscopes, this shines light from above, through the lens, so you

I have a post about my setup [1]. The main secret is a metallurgical microscope: unlike most microscopes, this shines light from above, through the lens, so you get good illumination of the die. (A ring light is easier, but it doesn't help at high magnification. Also, light from the side doesn't work as well.) I use a low-end metallurgical microscope that I found on eBay. You can see interesting stuff with a regular microscope, so take a look at chips if you have one, but a metallurgical microscope makes a huge difference. For the die photos, I stitch together multiple photos using the "Hugin" software package. I might use a dozen to 50 individual photos to produce a high-resolution image. Hugin has a learning curve, though. The final thing is how to decap the chip. Usually, I stick to ceramic or metal packages that I can open with a chisel or hacksaw. For epoxy packages, I don't want to mess around with boiling acids, but I have friends who can do this. [1] http://www.righto.com/2015/12/creating-high-resolution-integrated.html http://www.righto.com/2015/12/creating-high-resolution-integ...