• Korean Journal of Metals and Materials
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• v.49 no.2
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• pp.180-186
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• 2011

Isothermal annealing and electromigration tests were performed at $125^{\circ}C$ and $125^{\circ}C$, $3.6{\times}10_4A/cm^2$ conditions, respectively, in order to compare the growth kinetics of the intermetallic compound (IMC) in the Cu/thin Sn/Cu bump. $Cu_6Sn_5$ and $Cu_3Sn$ formed at the Cu/thin Sn/Cu interfaces where most of the Sn phase transformed into the $Cu_6Sn_5$ phase. Only a few regions of Sn were not consumed and trapped between the transformed regions. The limited supply of Sn atoms and the continued proliferation of Cu atoms enhanced the formation of the $Cu_3Sn$ phase at the Cu pillar/$Cu_6Sn_5$ interface. The IMC thickness increased linearly with the square root of annealing time, and increased linearly with the current stressing time, which means that the current stressing accelerated the interfacial reaction. Abrupt changes in the IMC growth velocities at a specific testing time were closely related to the phase transition from $Cu_6Sn_5$ to $Cu_3Sn$ phases after complete consumption of the remaining Sn phase due to the limited amount of the Sn phase in the Cu/thin Sn/Cu bump, which implies that the relative thickness ratios of Cu and Sn significantly affect Cu-Sn IMC growth kinetics.

• Journal of the Microelectronics and Packaging Society
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.55-62
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• 2023

In this study, Sn-3.0Ag-0.5Cu (wt.%, SAC305) solder dipping process was performed between Ni-foam skeleton with different pore per inch (PPI) to fabricate Ni-foam/SAC305 composite solder, and then applied to the transient liquid phase (TLP) bonding process to evaluate the microstructure and mechanical properties of the bonded joint. The Ni-foam/SAC305 composite solder preform consisted of Ni-foam and SAC305, and an intermetallic compound (IMC) having a (Ni,Cu)₃Sn₄ composition was formed at the Ni-foam interface. During TLP bonding process, the IMC at the Ni-foam interface was converted to (Ni,Cu)₃Sn₄+Au, and as the bonding time increased, the Ni-foam and SAC305 continuously reacted, and the bonded joint was converted into an IMC. And it was confirmed that the 130 PPI Ni-foam/SAC305 composite solder joint was converted into an IMC at the fastest rate. As a result of performing a shear test to confirm the effect of Ni-foam on mechanical properties, solder joints under all conditions exhibited excellent mechanical properties of 50 MPa or more in the early stages of the TLP bonding process, and the shear strength tends to increase as the bonding time increases.

• Journal of the Microelectronics and Packaging Society
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.63-71
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• 2022

In this study, the interfacial reaction and drop impact reliability of Sn-Ag-Cu (SAC) solder and electroless nickel autocatalytic gold (ENAG) were studied. In addition, the solder joint properties with the ENAG surface finish was compared with electroless nickel immersion gold (ENIG) and electroless nickel electroless palladium immersion gold (ENEPIG). The IMC thickness of SAC/ENAG and SAC/ENEPIG were 1.15 and 1.12 ㎛, respectively, which were similar each other. The IMC thickness of the SAC/ENIG was 2.99 ㎛, which was about two times higher than that of SAC/ENAG. Moreover, it was found that the IMC thickness of the solder joint was affected by the metal turnover (MTO) condition of the electroless Ni(P) plating solution, and it was found that the IMC thickness increased when the MTO increased from 0 to 3. The shear strength of SAC/ENEPIG was the highest, followed by SAC/ENAG and SAC/ENIG. It was found that when the MTO increased, the shear strength was lowered. In terms of brittle fracture, SAC/ENEPIG was the lowest among the three joints, followed by SAC/ENAG and SAC/ENIG. Likewise, it was found that as MTO increased, brittle fracture increased. In the drop impact test, it was confirmed that the 0 MTO condition had a higher average number of failures than the 3 MTO condition, and the average number of failures was also higher in the order of SAC/ENEIG, SAC/ENAG, and SAC/ENIG. As a result of observing the fracture surface after the drop impact, it was found that the fracture was between the IMC and the Ni(P) layer.

• Journal of the Microelectronics and Packaging Society
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• v.10 no.3
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• pp.37-42
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• 2003

In soldering of electronic packaging, the research on substituting lead-free solder materials for Pb-Sn alloys has become active due to environmental and health concerns over the use of lead. The reliability of the solder joint is very important in the development of solder materials and it is known that it is related to wettability of the solder over the substrate and microstructural evolution during soldering. It is also highly affected by type and extent of the interfacial reaction between solder and substrate and therefore, it is necessary to understand the interfacial reaction between solder and substrate completely. In order to predict the intermetallic compound (IMC) phase which forms first at the substrate/solder interface during the soldering process, a thermodynamic methodology has been suggested. The activation energy for the nucleation of each IMC phases is represented by a function of the interfacial energy and the driving force for phase formation. From this, it is predicted that the IMC phase with the smallest activation energy forms first. The grain morphology of the IMC at the solder joint is also explained by the calculations which use the energy. The Jackson parameter of the IMC grain with a rough surface is smaller than 2 but it is larger than 2 in the case of faceted grains.

• Proceedings of the KWS Conference
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• 2006.05a
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• pp.30-32
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• 2006

The interfacial reaction and reliability of eutectic Sn-Pb and Pb-free eutectic Sn-Ag ball-grid-array (BGA) solders with an immersion Ag-plated Cu substrate were evaluated following isothermal aging at $150^{\circ}C$. During reflowing, the topmost Ag layer was dissolved completely into the molten solder, leaving the Cu layer exposed to the molten solder for both solder systems. A typical scallop-type Cu-Sn intermetallic compound (IMC) layer was formed at both of the solder/Cu interfaces during reflowing. The thickness of the Cu-Sn IMCs for both solders was found to increase linearly with the square root of isothermal aging time. The growth of the $Cu_3Sn$ layer for the Sn-37Pb solder was faster than that for the Sn-3.5Ag solder, In the case of the Sn-37Pb solder, the formation of the Pb-rich layer on the Cu-Sn IMC layer retarded the growth of the $Cu_6Sn_5$ IMC layer, and thereby increased the growth rate of the $Cu_3Sn$ IMC layer. In the ball shear test conducted on the Sn-37Pb/Ag-plated Cu joint after aging for 500h, fracturing occurred at the solder/$Cu_6Sn_5$ interface. The shear failure was significantly related to the interfacial adhesion strength between the Pb-rich and $Cu_6Sn_5$ IMC layers. On the other hand, all fracturing occurred in the bulk solder for the Sn-3.5Ag/Ag-plated Cu joint, which confirmed its desirable joint reliability.

• Proceedings of the KWS Conference
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• 2010.05a
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• pp.82-82
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• 2010

표면실장 공법을 통해 CSP 패키지를 보드에 실장 하는데 있어 무연솔더 접합부의 신뢰성에 영향을 미치는 인자 중 가장 중요한 것은 접합부에 형성되는 IMC (Intermetallic compound, 금속간화합물)인 것으로 알려져 있다. 접합부의 칩 부분에는 솔더와 칩의 UBM (Under bump metalization)이 접합하여 IMC가 형성되나, 보드 부분에는 솔더와 보드의 UBM 뿐만 아니라 그 사이에 솔더 페이스트가 함께 접합되어 IMC가 형성된다. 본 연구에서는 패키지의 신뢰성 연구를 위해 솔더 페이스트의 유무 및 두께에 따른 무연 솔더 접합부의 미세조직의 변화를 분석하였다. 본 실험에서는 Sn-3.0(Wt.%)Ag-0.5Cu 조성과 본 연구진에 의해 개발된 Sn-Ag-Cu-In 조성의 직경 $450{\mu}m$ 솔더 볼을 사용하였으며, 솔더 페이스트는 상용 Sn-3.0Ag-0.5Cu (ALPHA OM-325)를 사용하였다. 칩은 ENIG (Electroless nickel immersion gold) finish pad가 형성된 CSP (Chip scale package)를, 보드는 OSP (Organic solderability preservative)/Cu finish pad가 형성된 것을 사용하였다. 실험 방법은 보드를 솔더 페이스트 없이 플라즈마 처리 한 것, 솔더 페이스트를 $30{\mu}m$ 두께로 인쇄한 것, $120{\mu}m$의 두께로 인쇄한 것, 이렇게 3가지 조건으로 준비한 후, 솔더 볼이 bumping된 칩을 mounting하여, $242^{\circ}C$의 peak 온도 조건의 oven(1809UL, Heller)에서 reflow를 실시하여 패키지를 형성하였다. 이후 시편은 정밀 연마한 후, OM(Optical Microscopic)과 SEM(scanning electron microscope) 및 EDS(energy dispersive spectroscope)를 사용하여 솔더 접합부 IMC의 미세조직을 관찰, 분석하였다.

• Journal of the Microelectronics and Packaging Society
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.1-9
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• 2002

The intermetallic formation between Sn-Ag-(Cu) solders and metal pads in a real BGA package was characterized using SEM, EDS, and XRD. The intermetallic phase formed in the interface between Sn-Ag-Cu and Au/Ni/Cu pad is likely to be ternary compound of $(Cu,Ni)_6Sn_5$ from EDS analysis High concentration of Cu was observed in the solder/Ni interface. XRD analysis confirmed that $\eta -Cu_6 Sn_5$ type was intermetallic phase formed in the interface between Cu containing solders and Ni substrates and $Ni_3$Sn_4$ intermetallic was formed in the Sn-Ag solder/Ni interface. The thickness of intermetallic phase increased with the reflow times and Cu concentration in solder.

• Journal of Welding and Joining
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.56-61
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• 2015

IRW(Inverter Resistance Welding) process and DSW(Delta-spot welding) process for dissimilar materials of DP590 and Al5052 were performed to evaluate the welding quality and mechanical properties. IRW experiment was carried out with changing the welding current. The other welding parameters such as pressure force, weld time, squeezing time and holding time were fixed. On the anther hand, DSW experiment was performed using the process tape at welding current of 11.5kA. The other conditions were same as IRW conditions. The various testes such as shear tensile strength, nugget diameters, EDS, SEM and cross-sectional observation for weld zone was performed. As a result, IMC(Inter Metallic Compound) thickness at 11.5kA was thinner than those of 9.5kA and 10.5kA conditions. In addition, thined IMC layer was observed when high electric current apply to the materials(DP590 and Al5052) in a short time throught dissimilar resistance spot welding controling welding conditions. The relationship between the thickeness of IMC and current intensity was after discussed.

• Journal of Welding and Joining
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• v.31 no.5
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• pp.54-58
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• 2013

Joint properties of vehicle ECU (Electric Control Unit) module which was manufactured by using Sn-Cu-Cr-Ca alloy were investigated. A new solder which has a middle melting temperature about $231^{\circ}C$ was fabricated as the type of 300um solder ball and paste type. The prototype modules were made by reflow process and measured spreadability, wettability shear strength and estimated interface reaction. The spreadability of the alloy was about 84% from the measurement of contact angle of the solder ball and the wetting force was measured 2mN. The average shear strength of the module which was manufactured by using the solder paste, was 1.9 $kg/mm^2$. Also, the thickness of IMC(intermetallic compound) was evaluated with various aging temperature and time in order to understand Cr effect on Sn-0.7Cu solder. $Cu_6Sn_5$ IMC was formed between Cu pad and the solder alloy and the average thickness of the $Cu_6Sn_5$ IMC was measured about 4um and it was about 50% of thickness of $Cu_6Sn_5$ IMC in Sn-0.7Cu. It is expected to have a positive effect on reliability of the solder joint.

• Journal of the Microelectronics and Packaging Society
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• v.11 no.3 s.32
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• pp.37-45
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• 2004

Electroless Ni(P) has been widely used for under bump metallization (UBM) of flip chip and surface finish layer in microelectronic packaging because of its excellent solderability, corrosion resistance, uniformity, selective deposition without photo-lithography, and also good diffusion barrier. However, the brittle fracture at solder joints and the spatting of intermetallic compound (IMC) associated with electroless Ni(P) are critical issues for its successful applications. In the present study, the mechanism of IMC spatting and microstructure change of the Ni(P) film were investigated with varying P content in the Ni(P) film (4.6,9, and $13 wt.\%$P). A reaction between Sn penetrated through the channels among $Ni_3Sn_4$ IMCs and the P-rich layer ($Ni_3P$) of the Ni(P) film formed a $Ni_3SnP$ layer. Thickening of the $Ni_3SnP$ layer led to $Ni_3Sn_4$ spatting. After $Ni_3Sn_4$ spatting, the Ni(P) film directly contacted the molten solder and the $Ni_3P$ phase further transformed into a $Ni_2P$ phase. During the crystallization process, some cracks formed in the Ni(P) film to release tensile stress accumulated from volume shrinkage of the film.