The effect of Ni addition on Cu-Sn intermetallic growth rate values in the SAC solder

• Main Authors: Andas J. (Author), Ghani, N.A.A (Author), Mayappan R. (Author), Mayappan, R. (Author), Yahya, I. (Author)
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: American Institute of Physics Inc. 2018
• Subjects: growth kinetics; Intermetallic compounds; lead-free solder; SAC-Ni; solder joint
• Online Access: View Fulltext in Publisher; View in Scopus
• ISBN: 0094243X (ISSN); 9780735417557 (ISBN)
• DOI: 10.1063/1.5066972

Due to environmental concerns, lead free solders were introduced in replacing the lead based solders in microelectronic devices technology. Among many lead-free solders, the Sn-3.5Ag-1.0Cu solder is the potential replacement for the Sn-Pb solder. This research was carried out to improve the properties of the Sn-3.5Ag-1.0Cu solder in terms of the reaction with copper substrate by adding small amount of Ni into the solder. The composite solders were synthesized via the powder metallurgy route, which consist of blending, compacting and sintering process. After soldering on copper substrate, the solder joint was aged at 150°C for 1000 hours. The thickness of Cu6Sn5 and Cu3Sn were measured and hence the growths kinetic of the intermetallics (k) were calculated. The results show that the SAC-0.05Ni solder has the lowest k value for Cu6Sn5 intermetallic and SAC-0.5Ni has the lowest k value for Cu3Sn intermetallic. © 2018 Author(s).