Abstract
Copper-based leadframe sheets were oxidized in a hot alkaline solution to form brown-oxide layer on the surface and molded with epoxy molding compound (EMC). The brown-oxide-coated leadframe/EMC joints were machined to form sandwiched double-cantilever beam (SDCB) specimens and sandwiched Brazil-nut (SBN) specimens for the purpose of measuring the fracture toughness of leadframe/EMC interfaces. The SDCB and the SBN specimens were designed to measure the fracture toughness of the leadframe/EMC interfaces under nearly mode-I loading and mixed-mode (mode I + mode II) loading conditions, respectively. Fracture surfaces were analyzed by various equipment such as glancing-angle XRD, SEM, AES, EDS and AFM to elucidate failure path. Results showed that failure occurred irregularly in the SDCB specimens, and oxidation time of 2 minutes divided the types of irregular failures into two classes. The failure in the SBN specimens was quite different from that in the SDCB specimens. The failure path in the SBN specimens was not dependent on the phase angle as well as the distance from tips of pre-cracks.