Au-Ge-based alloys are interesting as novel high-temperature lead-free solders because of their low melting point, good thermal and electrical conductivity, and high corrosion resistance. In the present work, the wetting and soldering behavior of the eutectic Au-28Ge (at.%) alloy on Cu and Ni substrates have been investigated. Good wetting on both substrates with final contact angles of 13° to 14° was observed. In addition, solder joints with bond shear strength of 30 MPa to 35 MPa could be produced under controlled conditions. Cu substrates exhibit pronounced dissolution into the Au-Ge filler metal. On Ni substrates, the NiGe intermetallic compound was formed at the filler/substrate interface, which prevents dissolution of Ni into the solder. Using thin filler metal foils (25 μm), complete consumption of Ge in the reaction at the Ni interface was observed, leading to the formation of an almost pure Au layer in the soldering zone.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
K. Zeng and K.N. Tu, Mater. Sci. Eng. R 38, 55 (2002).
C.M.L. Wu, D.Q. Yu, C.M.T. Law, and L. Wang, Mater. Sci. Eng. R 44, 1 (2004).
T. Laurila, V. Vuorinen, and J.K. Kivilahti, Mater. Sci. Eng. R 49, 1 (2005).
D.M. Jacobsen and G. Humpston, Gold Bull. 22, 9 (1989).
B. Massalski, Binary Alloy Phase Diagrams (Metals Park, OH: ASM, 1990).
J. Wang, C. Leinenbach, and M. Roth, J. Alloys Compd. 485, 577 (2009).
J. Wang, C. Leinenbach, and M. Roth, J. Alloys Compd. 481, 830 (2009).
V. Chidambaram, J. Hald, and J. Hattel, J. Alloys Compd. 490, 170 (2010).
W.S. Rapson and T. Groenwald, Gold Usage (New York: Academic, 1978).
H. Takiguchi, Z. Yoshikawa, H. Miyazaki, Y. Okamoto, and J. Morimoto, J. Electron. Mater. 39, 9 (2010).
T.S. Abhilash, C.H. Ravi Kumar, and G. Rajaram, Thin Solid Films 518, 5576 (2010).
V. Vuorinen, T. Laurila, H. Yu, and K. Kivilahti, J. Appl. Phys. 99, 23530 (2006).
R. Novakovic, E. Ricci, F. Gnecco, D. Giuranno, and G. Borzone, Surf. Sci. 509, 230 (2005).
F. Gnecco, E. Ricci, S. Amore, D. Giuranno, G. Borzone, G. Zanicchi, and R. Novakovic, Int. J. Adhes. Adhes. 27, 409 (2007).
N. Eustathopoulos, M.G. Nicholas, and B. Drevet, Wettability at High Temperatures, Vol. 3 (Oxford: Pergamon Materials Series, 1999).
J.A. Warren, W.J. Boettinger, and A.R. Roosen, Acta Mater. 46, 3247 (1998).
F.M. Hosking, J.J. Stephens, and J.A. Rejent, Weld. J. 78, 127 (1999).
L. Liggeri and A. Passerone, High Technol. 7, 82 (1989).
M. Viviani, ICFAM-CNR Technical Report (Italy: CNR Genoa 1999).
F. Valenza, M.L. Muolo, and A. Passerone, J. Mater. Sci. 45, 2071 (2010).
S. Siegmann, M. Dvorak, H. Gruetzner, K. Nassenstein, and A. Walter, Proceedings of the International Thermal Spray Conference, Vol. 823 (Dusseldorf, Germany: ASM International/DVS, 2005), p. 823.
O. Kozlova, R. Voytovych, P. Protsenko, and N. Eustathopoulos, J. Mater. Sci. 45, 2099 (2010).
Yu.V. Naidich, V.M. Pervertilo, and L.P. Obushchak, Poroshkovaya Metall. 5, 73 (1975).
T. Heumann and T. Rottwinkel, J. Nucl. Mater. 6970, 567 (1978).
Y.H. Lee and H.T. Lee, Mater. Sci. Eng. A 444, 75 (2007).
V. Sivasubramaniam, M. Galli, J. Cugnoni, J. Janczak-Rusch, and J. Botsis, J. Electron. Mater. 38, 19 (2009).
A. Kar, M. Ghosh, A.K. Ray, and R.N. Ghosh, Mater. Sci. Eng. A 459, 69 (2007).
K.H. Prakash and T. Sritharan, Mater. Sci. Eng. A 379, 277 (2004).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Leinenbach, C., Valenza, F., Giuranno, D. et al. Wetting and Soldering Behavior of Eutectic Au-Ge Alloy on Cu and Ni Substrates. J. Electron. Mater. 40, 1533–1541 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-011-1639-4
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-011-1639-4