Mechanical size effects in miniaturized lead-free solder joints

Abstract

Future reliability and quality control of microelectronics will greatly depend on a detailed understanding of the complex mechanical and thermal properties of miniaturized lead-free solder joints. Therefore, the question of the occurrence of size effects or dimensionally induced constraints, which could change the mechanical properties of solder joints in small dimensions dramatically, has become the focus of investigation. In this study we investigated the influence of decreasing gap size on the tensile, shear, and stress relaxation behavior of solder joints to investigate the occurrence of size effects and dimensionally induced constraints, which could change the mechanical properties of solder joints significantly in micrometer dimensions. Residual stresses might remain in the solder joints during high-temperature dwell in thermomechanical fatigue. Model solder joints (Sn3.5Ag/Cu) of rectangular shape with gap sizes varying between 25 μm and 850 μm were prepared by reflow soldering to achieve near-industrial soldering processing. Scanning electron microscopy was used for analyzing the microstructure and the complex modes of fracture and crack propagation in the solder interconnect. The observed tensile behavior can be interpreted in terms of an existing theory for brazed joints to complement finite-element analysis that is usually used for a description of these phenomena. © 2007 TMS.