• Journal of the Microelectronics and Packaging Society
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.33-38
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• 2009

The use of portable devices has created the need for new reliability criterion of drop impact tests because of the tendency to accidentally drop in the use of these devices. The effects of different PCB surface finishes (organic solderability preservative (OSP) and electroless nickel immersion gold (ENIG)) and high temperature storage (HTS) test on the drop reliability were studied. Various drop test conditions were used to evaluate a drop reliability of assemblies to endure such impact and shock load. In the case of the as-reflowed samples (no HTS test), the SAC/OSP boards exhibited a better drop impact reliability than that of SAC/ENIG. However, the reverse was true if HTS test is performed. In addition, significant decrease of drop reliability was observed for both SAC/ENIG and SAC/OSP assemblies after HTS test. It was also observed that the thickness of intermetallic compound layer do play an important role in the brittle fracture of drop test.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers Conference
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• 2008.11a
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• pp.412-412
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• 2008

ENIG(Electroless Nickel Immersion Gold)is a surface treatment method that is used most widely at fine pitch's SMT and BGA packaging process. ENIG has good diffusion barrier of Ni against solder and good wettability due to Au finish. But when the discoloration occurred on the Au finish of ENIG, some key characteristics related to the quality and reliability of PCB such as bondability, solderability and electrical flowing of packaging process could be deteriorated. In this paper, we have performed the water dip test ($88^{\circ}C$ purified water) which accelerates the galvanic corrosion of Ni diffused from the Ni-P layer. That is, the excessive oxidation of the Ni layer could result in non-wetting of the solder because the flux may not be able to remove excessive oxides. Though Au discoloration have been reported to be caused by Ni oxides in many literature, it is still open to verify and discuss The microstructures and chemical compositions have been investigated using FE-SEM, TEM, FIB, EDS and XPS. As a result, authors have found that the Au discoloration in ENIG type is severely caused by the oxidation of the Ni and the mechanism of Au discoloration can be confirmed through the experiment result of water dip test.

• 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.

• Korean Journal of Metals and Materials
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• v.47 no.3
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• pp.202-208
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• 2009

The effects of aging time on the microstructure and shear strength of the Low Temperature Co-fired Ceramic (LTCC)/Ag pad/Electroless Nickel Immersion Gold (ENIG)/BGA solder joints were investigated through isothermal aging at $150^{\circ}C$ for 1000 h with conventional Sn-37Pb and Sn-3Ag-0.5Cu. $Ni_3Sn_4$ intermetallic compound (IMC) layers was formed at the interface between Sn-37Pb solder and LTCC substrate as-reflowed state, while $(Ni,Cu)_3Sn_4$ IMC layer was formed between Sn-3Ag-0.5Cu solder and LTCC substrate. Additional $(Cu,Ni)_6Sn_5$ layer was found at the interface between the $(Ni,Cu)_3Sn_4$ layer and Sn-3Ag-0.5Cu solder after aging at $150^{\circ}C$ for 500 h. Thickness of the IMC layers increased and coarsened with increasing aging time. Shear strength of both solder joints increased with increasing aging time. Failure mode of BGA solder joints with LTCC substrate after shear testing revealed that shear strength of the joints depended on the adhesion between Ag metallization and LTCC. Fracture mechanism of Sn-37Pb solder joint was a mixture of ductile and pad lift, while that of Sn-3Ag-0.5Cu solder joint was a mixture of ductile and brittle $(Ni,Cu)_3Sn_4$ IMC fracture morphology. Failure mechanisms of LTCC/Ag pad/ENIG/BGA solder joints were also interpreted by finite element analyses.

• Journal of Welding and Joining
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• v.30 no.5
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• pp.64-69
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• 2012

Sn-Bi eutectic alloy has been widely used as one of the key solder materials for step soldering at low temperature. The Sn-58Bi solder paste containing chloride flux was adopted to compare with that using the chloride-free flux. The paste was applied on the electroless nickel-immersion gold (ENIG) surface finish by stencil printing, and the reflow process was then performed at $170^{\circ}C$ for 10 min. After reflow, the solder joints were aged at $125^{\circ}C$ for 100, 200, 300, 500 and 1000 h in an oven. The interfacial microstructures were obtained by using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and the composition of intermetallic compounds (IMCs) was analyzed using energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS). Two different IMC layers, consisting of $Ni_3Sn_4$ and relatively very thin Sn-Bi-Ni-Au were formed at the solder/surface finish interface, and their thickness increased with increasing aging time. The wettability of solder joints was investigated by wetting balance test. The mechanical property of each aging solder joint was evaluated by the ball shear test in accordance with JEDEC standard (JESD22-B117A). The results show that the highest shear force was measured when the aging time was 100 h, and the fracture mode changed from ductile fracture to brittle fracture with increasing aging time. On the other hand, the chloride flux in the solder paste did not affect the shear force and fracture mode of the solder joints.

• Journal of the Microelectronics and Packaging Society
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.61-68
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• 2023

In this study, Sn-3.5Ag-15.0Fe composite solder was manufactured and applied to TLP bonding to change the entire joint into a Sn-Fe IMC(intermetallic compound), thereby applying it as a high-temperature solder. The FeSn₂ IMC formed during the bonding process has a high melting point of 513℃, so it can be stably applied to power modules for power semiconductors where the temperature rises up to 280℃ during use. As a result of applying ENIG surface treatment to both the chip and substrate, a multi-layer IMC structure of Ni₃Sn₄/FeSn₂/Ni₃Sn₄ was formed at the joint. During the shear test, the fracture path showed that cracks developed at the Ni₃Sn₄/FeSn₂ interface and then propagated into FeSn₂. After 2hours of the TLP joining process, a shear strength of over 30 MPa was obtained, and in particular, there was no decrease in strength at all even in a shear test at 200℃. The results of this study can be expected to lead to materials and processes that can be applied to power modules for electric vehicles, which are being actively researched recently.