Advances in Pb-free solder microstructure control and interconnect design

Reeve, Kathlene N.; Holaday, John R.; Choquette, Stephanie M.; Anderson, Iver E.; Handwerker, Carol A.

doi:10.1007/s11669-016-0476-9

Title: Advances in Pb-free solder microstructure control and interconnect design

Journal Article · Thu Jun 09 00:00:00 EDT 2016 · Journal of Phase Equilibria and Diffusion

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1007/s11669-016-0476-9· OSTI ID:1337693

Reeve, Kathlene N. ^[1]; Holaday, John R. ^[1]; Choquette, Stephanie M. ^[2]; Anderson, Iver E. ^[2]; Handwerker, Carol A. ^[1]

Purdue Univ., West Lafayette, IN (United States)
Ames Lab. and Iowa State Univ., Ames, IA (United States)

New electronics applications demanding enhanced performance and higher operating temperatures have led to continued research in the field of Pb-free solder designs and interconnect solutions. In this paper, recent advances in the microstructural design of Pb-free solders and interconnect systems were discussed by highlighting two topics: increasing β-Sn nucleation in Sn-based solders, and isothermally solidified interconnects using transient liquid phases. Issues in β-Sn nucleation in Sn-based solders were summarized in the context of Swenson’s 2007 review of the topic. Recent advancements in the areas of alloy composition manipulation, nucleating heterogeneities, and rapid solidification were discussed, and a proposal based on a multi-faceted solidification approach involving the promotion of constitutional undercooling and nucleating heterogeneities was outlined for future research. The second half of the paper analyzed two different approaches to liquid phase diffusion bonding as a replacement for high-Pb solders, one based on the application of the pseudo-binary Cu-Ni-Sn ternary system, and the other on a proposed thermodynamic framework for identifying potential ternary alloys for liquid phase diffusion bonding. Furthermore, all of the concepts reviewed relied upon the fundamentals of thermodynamics, kinetics, and solidification, to which Jack Smith substantially contributed during his scientific career.

View Accepted Manuscript (DOE)

Cite

Export

Save

Research Organization:: Ames Laboratory (AMES), Ames, IA (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE

Grant/Contract Number:: AC02-07CH11358

OSTI ID:: 1337693

Report Number(s):: IS-J-9093; PII: 476

Journal Information:: Journal of Phase Equilibria and Diffusion, Vol. 37, Issue 4; ISSN 1547-7037

Publisher:: ASM InternationalCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

Citation Metrics:

Cited by: 14 works

Citation information provided by
Web of Science

References (61)

Thermodynamic properties of binary lithium systems — A review Smith, J. F.; Moser, Z. Journal of Nuclear Materials, Vol. 59, Issue 2 https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-3115(76)90131-8	journal	February 1976
Single-Crystal Elastic Constants of Yttria-Stabilized Zirconia in the Range 20° to 700°C Kandil, H. M.; Greiner, J. D.; Smith, J. F. Journal of the American Ceramic Society, Vol. 67, Issue 5 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1151-2916.1984.tb19534.x	journal	May 1984
A viable tin-lead solder substitute: Sn-Ag-Cu Miller, Chad M.; Anderson, Iver E.; Smith, Jack F. Journal of Electronic Materials, Vol. 23, Issue 7 https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02653344	journal	July 1994
Are you ready for lead-free electronics? Eveloy, V.; Ganesan, S.; Fukuda, Y. IEEE Transactions on Components and Packaging Technologies, Vol. 28, Issue 4 https://doi.org/10.1109/TCAPT.2005.859353	journal	December 2005
Handbook of Lead-Free Solder Technology for Microelectronic Assemblies Puttlitz, Karl J.; Stalter, Kathleen A. https://doi.org/10.1201/9780203021484	book	February 2004
Issues related to the implementation of Pb-free electronic solders in consumer electronics Frear, D. R. Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Electronics, Vol. 18, Issue 1-3 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10854-006-9021-7	journal	September 2006
Physics and materials challenges for lead-free solders Tu, K. N.; Gusak, A. M.; Li, M. Journal of Applied Physics, Vol. 93, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.1517165	journal	February 2003
The Pb−Sn (Lead-Tin) system Karakaya, I.; Thompson, W. T. Journal of Phase Equilibria, Vol. 9, Issue 2 https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02890552	journal	April 1988
Experimental and thermodynamic assessment of Sn-Ag-Cu solder alloys Moon, K. -W.; Boettinger, W. J.; Kattner, U. R. Journal of Electronic Materials, Vol. 29, Issue 10 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-000-0003-x	journal	October 2000
The Effect of Small Additives on the Undercooling of Pure Tin [溶融錫の過冷におよぼす微量添加元素の影響] Ohno, Atsumi; Motegi, Tetsuichi Journal of the Japan Institute of Metals, Vol. 37, Issue 7 https://doi.org/10.2320/jinstmet1952.37.7_777	journal	January 1973
Alloying effects in near-eutectic Sn-Ag-Cu solder alloys for improved microstructural stability Anderson, I. E.; Foley, J. C.; Cook, B. A. Journal of Electronic Materials, Vol. 30, Issue 9 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-001-0129-5	journal	September 2001
Effects of fourth alloying additive on microstructures and tensile properties of Sn–Ag–Cu alloy and joints with Cu Kim, K. S.; Huh, S. H.; Suganuma, K. Microelectronics Reliability, Vol. 43, Issue 2 https://doi.org/10.1016/S0026-2714(02)00239-1	journal	February 2003
Alloying modification of Sn–Ag–Cu solders by manganese and titanium Lin, Li-Wei; Song, Jenn-Ming; Lai, Yi-Shao Microelectronics Reliability, Vol. 49, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.microrel.2008.10.001	journal	March 2009
Nucleation Control and Thermal Aging Resistance of Near-Eutectic Sn-Ag-Cu-X Solder Joints by Alloy Design Anderson, Iver E.; Walleser, Jason W.; Harringa, Joel L. Journal of Electronic Materials, Vol. 38, Issue 12 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-009-0936-7	journal	September 2009
Development of Sn-Ag-Cu-X Solders for Electronic Assembly by Micro-Alloying with Al Boesenberg, Adam J.; Anderson, Iver E.; Harringa, Joel L. Journal of Electronic Materials, Vol. 41, Issue 7 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-012-1979-8	journal	March 2012
Nucleation and Growth of Cu-Al Intermetallics in Al-Modified Sn-Cu and Sn-Ag-Cu Lead-Free Solder Alloys Reeve, Kathlene N.; Anderson, Iver E.; Handwerker, Carol A. Journal of Electronic Materials, Vol. 44, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-014-3551-1	journal	January 2015
The effects of suppressed beta tin nucleation on the microstructural evolution of lead-free solder joints Swenson, D. Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Electronics, Vol. 18, Issue 1-3 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10854-006-9012-8	journal	September 2006
Nucleation in undercooled liquids Perepezko, John H. Materials Science and Engineering, Vol. 65, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1016/0025-5416(84)90206-4	journal	July 1984
Growth of Sn and intermetallic compounds in Sn-Ag-Cu solder Lehman, L. P.; Athavale, S. N.; Fullem, T. Z. Journal of Electronic Materials, Vol. 33, Issue 12 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-004-0083-0	journal	December 2004
Cyclic twin nucleation in tin-based solder alloys Lehman, L. P.; Xing, Y.; Bieler, T. R. Acta Materialia, Vol. 58, Issue 10 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actamat.2010.01.030	journal	June 2010
Crystallization, morphology and distribution of Ag3Sn in Sn–Ag–Cu alloys and their influence on the vibration fracture properties Song, Jenn-Ming; Lin, Jian-Jhih; Huang, Chi-Feng Materials Science and Engineering: A, Vol. 466, Issue 1-2 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.msea.2007.04.121	journal	September 2007
Influence of Sn Grain Size and Orientation on the Thermomechanical Response and Reliability of Pb-free Solder Joints Bieler, T. R.; Lehman, L. P. IEEE Transactions on Components and Packaging Technologies, Vol. 31, Issue 2 https://doi.org/10.1109/TCAPT.2008.916835	journal	June 2008
Characterization of microstructure and crystal orientation of the tin phase in single shear lap Sn–3.5Ag solder joint specimens Telang, A. U.; Bieler, T. R. Scripta Materialia, Vol. 52, Issue 10 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scriptamat.2005.01.043	journal	May 2005
Effects of cooling speed on microstructure and tensile properties of Sn–Ag–Cu alloys Kim, K. S.; Huh, S. H.; Suganuma, K. Materials Science and Engineering: A, Vol. 333, Issue 1-2 https://doi.org/10.1016/S0921-5093(01)01828-7	journal	August 2002
Ag ₃ Sn plate formation in the solidification of near ternary eutectic Sn–Ag–Cu alloys Henderson, Donald W.; Gosselin, Timothy; Sarkhel, Amit Journal of Materials Research, Vol. 17, Issue 11 https://doi.org/10.1557/JMR.2002.0402	journal	November 2002
Effects of Ag content on fracture resistance of Sn–Ag–Cu lead-free solders under high-strain rate conditions Suh, Daewoong; Kim, Dong W.; Liu, Pilin Materials Science and Engineering: A, Vol. 460-461 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.msea.2007.01.145	journal	July 2007
The influence of solder composition on the impact strength of lead-free solder ball grid array joints Tsukamoto, H.; Nishimura, T.; Suenaga, S. Microelectronics Reliability, Vol. 51, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.microrel.2010.10.012	journal	March 2011
Effect of Cu concentration on the reactions between Sn-Ag-Cu solders and Ni Ho, C. E.; Tsai, R. Y.; Lin, Y. L. Journal of Electronic Materials, Vol. 31, Issue 6 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-002-0129-0	journal	June 2002
Cross-Interaction between Ni and Cu across Sn Layers with Different Thickness Chang, Chien Wei; Yang, Su Chun; Tu, Chun-Te Journal of Electronic Materials, Vol. 36, Issue 11 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-007-0235-0	journal	September 2007
The orientation relationship between Ni and Cu6Sn5 formed during the soldering reaction Chen, W. M.; Yang, T. L.; Chung, C. K. Scripta Materialia, Vol. 65, Issue 4 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scriptamat.2011.04.034	journal	August 2011
Nickel-stabilized hexagonal (Cu,Ni)6Sn5 in Sn–Cu–Ni lead-free solder alloys Nogita, Kazuhiro; Nishimura, Tetsuro Scripta Materialia, Vol. 59, Issue 2 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scriptamat.2008.03.002	journal	July 2008
Stabilisation of Cu6Sn5 by Ni in Sn-0.7Cu-0.05Ni lead-free solder alloys Nogita, Kazuhiro Intermetallics, Vol. 18, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.intermet.2009.07.005	journal	January 2010
Effect of Ni on phase stability and thermal expansion of Cu6−xNixSn5 (X = 0, 0.5, 1, 1.5 and 2) Nogita, K.; Mu, D.; McDonald, S. D. Intermetallics, Vol. 26 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.intermet.2012.03.047	journal	July 2012
Heterogeneous nucleation of Cu6Sn5 in Sn–Cu–Al solders Xian, J. W.; Belyakov, S. A.; Britton, T. B. Journal of Alloys and Compounds, Vol. 619 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jallcom.2014.08.251	journal	January 2015
Controlling Bulk Cu6Sn5 Nucleation in Sn0.7Cu/Cu Joints with Al Micro-alloying Xian, J. W.; Belyakov, S. A.; Gourlay, C. M. Journal of Electronic Materials, Vol. 45, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-015-4092-y	journal	October 2015
Heterogeneous nucleation of βSn on NiSn4, PdSn4 and PtSn4 Belyakov, S. A.; Gourlay, C. M. Acta Materialia, Vol. 71 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actamat.2014.02.044	journal	June 2014
Eutectic Solidification in Metals Winegard, W. C.; Majka, S.; Thall, B. M. Canadian Journal of Chemistry, Vol. 29, Issue 4 https://doi.org/10.1139/v51-037	journal	April 1951
The redistribution of solute atoms during the solidification of metals Tiller, W. A.; Jackson, K. A.; Rutter, J. W. Acta Metallurgica, Vol. 1, Issue 4 https://doi.org/10.1016/0001-6160(53)90126-6	journal	July 1953
Dendritic growth into undercooled alloy metals Lipton, J.; Glicksman, M. E.; Kurz, W. Materials Science and Engineering, Vol. 65, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1016/0025-5416(84)90199-X	journal	July 1984
Microsegregation Kirkwood, D. H. Materials Science and Engineering, Vol. 65, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1016/0025-5416(84)90204-0	journal	July 1984
Rapid dendrite growth in undercooled alloys Lipton, J.; Kurz, W.; Trivedi, R. Acta Metallurgica, Vol. 35, Issue 4 https://doi.org/10.1016/0001-6160(87)90174-X	journal	April 1987
Dendritic solidification in binary alloys Chopra, M. A.; Glicksman, M. E.; Singh, N. B. Metallurgical Transactions A, Vol. 19, Issue 12 https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02647736	journal	December 1988
The Contribution of Constitutional Supercooling to Nucleation and Grain Formation StJohn, D. H.; Prasad, A.; Easton, M. A. Metallurgical and Materials Transactions A, Vol. 46, Issue 11 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11661-015-2960-y	journal	May 2015
Grain refinement of aluminum alloys: Part I. the nucleant and solute paradigms—a review of the literature Easton, Mark; StJohn, David Metallurgical and Materials Transactions A, Vol. 30, Issue 6 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11661-999-0098-5	journal	June 1999
Grain refinement of aluminum alloys: Part II. Confirmation of, and a mechanism for, the solute paradigm Easton, Mark; StJohn, David Metallurgical and Materials Transactions A, Vol. 30, Issue 6 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11661-999-0099-4	journal	June 1999
A model of grain refinement incorporating alloy constitution and potency of heterogeneous nucleant particles Easton, M. A.; StJohn, D. H. Acta Materialia, Vol. 49, Issue 10 https://doi.org/10.1016/S1359-6454(00)00368-2	journal	June 2001
An analysis of the relationship between grain size, solute content, and the potency and number density of nucleant particles Easton, Mark; StJohn, David Metallurgical and Materials Transactions A, Vol. 36, Issue 7 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11661-005-0054-y	journal	July 2005
Interfacial Reactions of Si Die Attachment with Zn-Sn and Au-20Sn High Temperature Lead-Free Solders on Cu Substrates Kim, Seongjun; Kim, Keun-Soo; Suganuma, Katsuaki Journal of Electronic Materials, Vol. 38, Issue 6 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-009-0770-y	journal	April 2009
Reliability of Au-Ge and Au-Si Eutectic Solder Alloys for High-Temperature Electronics Chidambaram, Vivek; Yeung, Ho Beng; Shan, Gao Journal of Electronic Materials, Vol. 41, Issue 8 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-012-2114-6	journal	May 2012
Development of high-temperature solders: Review Zeng, Guang; McDonald, Stuart; Nogita, Kazuhiro Microelectronics Reliability, Vol. 52, Issue 7 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.microrel.2012.02.018	journal	July 2012
Au–Sn bonding material for the assembly of power integrated circuit module Zhu, Z. X.; Li, C. C.; Liao, L. L. Journal of Alloys and Compounds, Vol. 671 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jallcom.2016.02.065	journal	June 2016
Reliability and failure analysis of Cu-Sn transient liquid phase sintered (TLPS) joints under power cycling loads Moeini, S. Ali; Greve, Hannes; McCluskey, F. Patrick 2015 IEEE 3rd Workshop on Wide Bandgap Power Devices and Applications (WiPDA) https://doi.org/10.1109/WiPDA.2015.7369306	conference	November 2015
Die Attach Materials for High Temperature Applications: A Review Manikam, Vemal Raja; Cheong, Kuan Yew IEEE Transactions on Components, Packaging and Manufacturing Technology, Vol. 1, Issue 4, p. 457-478 https://doi.org/10.1109/TCPMT.2010.2100432	journal	March 2011
Diffusion bonding of commercially pure Ni using Cu interlayer Rahman, A. H. M. E.; Cavalli, M. N. Materials Characterization, Vol. 69 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matchar.2012.04.010	journal	July 2012
Transient liquid phase sintered attach for power electronics Greve, Hannes; Chen, Liang-Yu; Fox, Ian 2013 IEEE 63rd Electronic Components and Technology Conference (ECTC) https://doi.org/10.1109/ECTC.2013.6575608	conference	May 2013
Formation of Intermetallic Compounds Between Liquid Sn and Various CuNi x Metallizations Vuorinen, V.; Yu, H.; Laurila, T. Journal of Electronic Materials, Vol. 37, Issue 6 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-008-0411-x	journal	March 2008
Effect of Ni content on the diffusion-controlled growth of the product phases in the Cu(Ni)–Sn system Baheti, Varun A.; Islam, Sarfaraj; Kumar, Praveen Philosophical Magazine, Vol. 96, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1080/14786435.2015.1119905	journal	December 2015
Phase equilibria and solidification properties of Sn-Cu-Ni alloys Lin, Chih-Hao; Chen, Sinn-Wen; Wang, Chao-Hong Journal of Electronic Materials, Vol. 31, Issue 9 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-002-0182-8	journal	September 2002
Sn–In–Ag phase equilibria and Sn–In–(Ag)/Ag interfacial reactions Chen, Sinn-wen; Lee, Wan-yu; Hsu, Chia-ming Materials Chemistry and Physics, Vol. 128, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matchemphys.2011.02.078	journal	August 2011
Diffusion couple studies of the Ni-Bi-Sn system Vassilev, G.; Milcheva, N.; Record, M. C. Journal of Mining and Metallurgy, Section B: Metallurgy, Vol. 48, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.2298/JMMB120827044V	journal	January 2012
Influence of Bonding Parameters on the Interaction Between Cu and Noneutectic Sn-In Solder Thin Films Sasangka, Wardhana A.; Gan, Chee Lip; Thompson, Carl V. Journal of Electronic Materials, Vol. 40, Issue 11 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-011-1747-1	journal	September 2011

Cited By (4)

Chameleon Metals: Autonomous Nano‐Texturing and Composition Inversion on Liquid Metals Surfaces Martin, Andrew; Kiarie, Winnie; Chang, Boyce Angewandte Chemie, Vol. 132, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1002/ange.201912639	journal	December 2019
Chameleon Metals: Autonomous Nano‐Texturing and Composition Inversion on Liquid Metals Surfaces Martin, Andrew; Kiarie, Winnie; Chang, Boyce Angewandte Chemie International Edition, Vol. 59, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.201912639	journal	December 2019
Beta-Tin Grain Formation in Aluminum-Modified Lead-Free Solder Alloys Reeve, Kathlene N.; Handwerker, Carol A. Journal of Electronic Materials, Vol. 47, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-017-5819-8	journal	October 2017
Orientation Relationships of Pure Tin on Single Crystal Germanium Substrates Reeve, Thomas C.; Reeve, Samuel Temple; Handwerker, Carol A. Journal of Electronic Materials, Vol. 49, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-019-07640-6	journal	October 2019

Similar Records

Development of Sn-Ag-Cu-X Solders for Electronic Assembly by Micro-Alloying with Al

Journal Article · Sat Mar 10 00:00:00 EST 2012 · Journal of Electronic Materials · OSTI ID:1337693

Boesenberg, Adam; Anderson, Iver; Harringa, Joel

Microstructure and In Situ Observations of Undercooling for Nucleation of [beta]-Sn Relevant to Lead-Free Solder Alloys

Journal Article · Tue Mar 16 00:00:00 EDT 2010 · J. Electro. Mater. · OSTI ID:1337693

Elmer, John W; Specht, Eliot D; Kumar, Mukul

Microstructure and in situ observation of undercooling for nucleation of b-Sn relevant to lead-free solder alloys

Journal Article · Fri Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 2010 · Journal of Electronic Materials · OSTI ID:1337693

Elmer, J. W.; Specht, Eliot D; Kumar, Mukul

Related Subjects

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
constitutional undercooling
grain nucleation
liquid phase diffusion bonding
Pb-free solder
ternary diagrams
transient liquid

Title: Advances in Pb-free solder microstructure control and interconnect design

Citation Formats

References (61)

Cited By (4)

Similar Records

Related Subjects