A review: lead free solder and its wettability properties

2016 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 125-132 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ervina Efzan Mhd Noor ◽  
Nur Faziera Mhd Nasir ◽  
Siti Rabiatul Aisya Idris

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to publish on the review of the lead free solder for electronic packaging. This involved the basic principles of the solder, the lead solder and its legislation and the lead free solder with its mechanism. In addition, this paper also reviews on the lead free solder characteristics that focused on its wettability. Design/methodology/approach This paper approach on the review of the solder wettability on the surface. It reviews on the solder especially on the contact angle and surface tension that is covered under the wettability of the solder. Findings This paper also reviews on the lead free solder characteristics that focused on its wettability. Originality/value This paper summarized finding from other researchers. The authors collect and summarize the useful data from other papers or journals. It is to create an understanding for the reader by discussion from the others research papers findings.

2016 ◽  
Vol 28 (4) ◽  
pp. 201-206 ◽  
Author(s):  
Min Wu ◽  
Xiangyu Su

Purpose Because of the complexity of relationship between surface tension and its decisive factors, such as temperature, concentration, electronic density, molar atomic volume and electro-negativity, a reasonable predicting model of surface tension of Sn-based solder alloys has not been developed yet. The paper aims to address the surface tension issue that has to be considered if the new lead free solder will be applied for electronics. Design/methodology/approach Using an artificial neural network (ANN) model with back-propagation (BP) algorithm, the surface tension for Sn-based binary solder alloys was simulated, and the comparison between the simulating results and data from experiments and literatures was analyzed as well. In addition, the relationship between surface tension and its decisive factors would be discussed based on the ANN and orthogonal design methods. Findings It is shown that the predicting model of surface tension of Sn-based solder alloys is constructed according to the BP–ANN theory, and the predicted value from the BP–ANN is in excellent agreement with the experimental results. The surface tension of Sn-based solders is determined by five factors, i.e. temperature, concentration, electronic density, molar atomic volume and electro-negativity. Among of the factors, molar atomic volume is major factor, and the order of degree of influence on surface tension is molar atomic volume > electro-negativity > electronic > density > concentration > temperature. Moreover, a simply reasonable equation is proposed to estimate the surface tension for Sn-based solders. Originality/value The five decisive factors of surface tension for Sn-based binary solder alloys have been analyzed theoretically, and a reasonable model of surface tension for Sn-based binary solder alloys is proposed as well. It is shown that ANN theory will be applied well to simulate the surface tension of Sn-based lead free solder.


2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fakhrozi Che Ani ◽  
Azman Jalar ◽  
Abdullah Aziz Saad ◽  
Chu Yee Khor ◽  
Roslina Ismail ◽  
...  

Purpose This paper aims to investigate the characteristics of ultra-fine lead-free solder joints reinforced with TiO2 nanoparticles in an electronic assembly. Design/methodology/approach This study focused on the microstructure and quality of solder joints. Various percentages of TiO2 nanoparticles were mixed with a lead-free Sn-3.5Ag-0.7Cu solder paste. This new form of nano-reinforced lead-free solder paste was used to assemble a miniature package consisting of an ultra-fine capacitor on a printed circuit board by means of a reflow soldering process. The microstructure and the fillet height were investigated using a focused ion beam, a high-resolution transmission electron microscope system equipped with an energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer (EDS), and a field emission scanning electron microscope coupled with an EDS and X-ray diffraction machine. Findings The experimental results revealed that the intermetallic compound with the lowest thickness was produced by the nano-reinforced solder with a TiO2 content of 0.05 Wt.%. Increasing the TiO2 content to 0.15 Wt.% led to an improvement in the fillet height. The characteristics of the solder joint fulfilled the reliability requirements of the IPC standards. Practical implications This study provides engineers with a profound understanding of the characteristics of ultra-fine nano-reinforced solder joint packages in the microelectronics industry. Originality/value The findings are expected to provide proper guidelines and references with regard to the manufacture of miniaturized electronic packages. This study also explored the effects of TiO2 on the microstructure and the fillet height of ultra-fine capacitors.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Guang Ren ◽  
Maurice Collins

Purpose This paper aims to investigate the creep behaviour of the recently developed Sn–8Zn–3Bi–xSb (x = 0, 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5) low temperature lead-free solder alloys. Design/methodology/approach An in-house compressive test rig was developed to perform creep tests under stresses of 20–40 MPa and temperature range 25°C–75 °C. Dorn power law and Garofalo hyperbolic sine law were used to model the secondary creep rate. Findings High coefficient of determination R2 of 0.99 is achieved for both the models. It was found that the activation energy of Sn–8Zn–3Bi solder alloy can be significantly increased with addition of Sb, by 60% to 90 kJ/mol approximately, whereas the secondary creep exponent falls in the range 3–7. Improved creep resistance is attributed to solid solution strengthening introduced by micro-alloying. Creep mechanisms that govern the deformation of these newly developed lead-free solder alloys have also been proposed. Originality/value The findings are expected to fill the gap of knowledge on creep behaviour of these newly developed solder alloys, which are possible alternatives as lead-free interconnecting material in low temperature electronic assembly.


2016 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 41-62 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chun Sean Lau ◽  
C.Y. Khor ◽  
D. Soares ◽  
J.C. Teixeira ◽  
M.Z. Abdullah

Purpose The purpose of the present study was to review the thermo-mechanical challenges of reflowed lead-free solder joints in surface mount components (SMCs). The topics of the review include challenges in modelling of the reflow soldering process, optimization and the future challenges in the reflow soldering process. Besides, the numerical approach of lead-free solder reliability is also discussed. Design/methodology/approach Lead-free reflow soldering is one of the most significant processes in the development of surface mount technology, especially toward the miniaturization of the advanced SMCs package. The challenges lead to more complex thermal responses when the PCB assembly passes through the reflow oven. The virtual modelling tools facilitate the modelling and simulation of the lead-free reflow process, which provide more data and clear visualization on the particular process. Findings With the growing trend of computer power and software capability, the multidisciplinary simulation, such as the temperature and thermal stress of lead-free SMCs, under the influenced of a specific process atmosphere can be provided. A simulation modelling technique for the thermal response and flow field prediction of a reflow process is cost-effective and has greatly helped the engineer to eliminate guesswork. Besides, simulated-based optimization methods of the reflow process have gained popularity because of them being economical and have reduced time-consumption, and these provide more information compared to the experimental hardware. The advantages and disadvantages of the simulation modelling in the reflow soldering process are also briefly discussed. Practical implications This literature review provides the engineers and researchers with a profound understanding of the thermo-mechanical challenges of reflowed lead-free solder joints in SMCs and the challenges of simulation modelling in the reflow process. Originality/value The unique challenges in solder joint reliability, and direction of future research in reflow process were identified to clarify the solutions to solve lead-free reliability issues in the electronics manufacturing industry.


2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 173-180
Author(s):  
Min Wu ◽  
Bailin Lv

Purpose Viscosity is an important basic physical property of liquid solders. However, because of the very complex nonlinear relationship between the viscosity of the liquid ternary Sn-based lead-free solder and its determinants, a theoretical model for the viscosity of the liquid Sn-based solder alloy has not been proposed. This paper aims to address the viscosity issues that must be considered when developing new lead-free solders. Design/methodology/approach A BP neural network model was established to predict the viscosity of the liquid alloy and the predicted values were compared with the corresponding experimental data in the literature data. At the same time, the BP neural network model is compared with the existing theoretical model. In addition, a mathematical model for estimating the melt viscosity of ternary tin-based lead-free solders was constructed using a polynomial fitting method. Findings A reasonable BP neural network model was established to predict the melt viscosity of ternary tin-based lead-free solders. The viscosity prediction of the BP neural network agrees well with the experimental results. Compared to the Seetharaman and the Moelwyn–Hughes models, the BP neural network model can predict the viscosity of liquid alloys without the need to calculate the relevant thermodynamic parameters. In addition, a simple equation for estimating the melt viscosity of a ternary tin-based lead-free solder has been proposed. Originality/value The study identified nine factors that affect the melt viscosity of ternary tin-based lead-free solders and used these factors as input parameters for BP neural network models. The BP neural network model is more convenient because it does not require the calculation of relevant thermodynamic parameters. In addition, a mathematical model for estimating the viscosity of a ternary Sn-based lead-free solder alloy has been proposed. The overall research shows that the BP neural network model can be well applied to the theoretical study of the viscosity of liquid solder alloys. Using a constructed BP neural network to predict the viscosity of a lead-free solder melt helps to study the liquid physical properties of lead-free solders that are widely used in electronic information.


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