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Effect of Ni on the Au embrittlement in Sn/Au/Ni solder bump

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Abstract

The effect of Ni on the gold embrittlement in the Sn/Au/Ni solder bump was studied in this paper. The mechanical properties of (Au1−x,Nix)Sn4 (x = 0, 0.25, 0.5) bulk, β-Sn/(Au1−x,Nix)Sn4 interface and Ni3Sn4/(Au1−x,Nix)Sn4 interface were calculated based on first principles, respectively. For bulk (Au1−x,Nix)Sn4, the ratio between bulk modulus and shear modulus shows that the addition of Ni into bulk AuSn4 would increase the brittleness, which could lead to bulk gold embrittlement. For the (100) β-Sn/(080) (Au1−x,Nix)Sn4 interface, the introduction of Ni into AuSn4 would increase the adhesion energy of interface, indicating strengthening the interface. While for (111) Ni3Sn4/(080) (Au1−x,Nix)Sn4 interface, the inclusion of Ni into AuSn4 would decrease the adhesion energy and deteriorate the bonding strength of interface. Furthermore, the cracks are prone to initiate at the (111) Ni3Sn4/(080) (Au1−x,Nix)Sn4 interface in the ideal tensile simulation, indicating that the introduction of Ni into AuSn4 would cause the interfacial gold embrittlement, which is usually not concerned in previous theoretical studies.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Tianjin Key Laboratory of Advanced Joining Technology, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300072, China

    Tao Wang, Hailong Li, Shiguang Hao & Xuehong Zhang

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Wang, T., Li, H., Hao, S. et al. Effect of Ni on the Au embrittlement in Sn/Au/Ni solder bump. J Mater Sci: Mater Electron 32, 28426–28435 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10854-021-07222-5

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