Thermal Performance of Low-Melting-Temperature Alloy Thermal Interface Materials

doi:10.1007/s40195-014-0042-6

Acta Metallurgica Sinica (English Letters) ›› 2014, Vol. 27 ›› Issue (2): 290-294.DOI: 10.1007/s40195-014-0042-6

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Thermal Performance of Low-Melting-Temperature Alloy Thermal Interface Materials

E. Yang^1,³, Hongyan Guo¹, Jingdong Guo¹(), Jianku Shang^1,², Mingguang Wang³

1. Shenyang National Laboratory for Materials Science, Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang, 110016, China
2. Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA
3. College of Sciences, Northeastern University, Shenyang, 110189, China

Received:2013-01-28 Revised:2013-03-02 Online:2014-04-25 Published:2014-05-07

Abstract

Abstract:

Thermal resistance of low-melting-temperature alloy (LMTA) thermal interface materials (TIMs) was measured by laser flash method before and after different stages of heating. The results showed that the thermal performance of the LMTA TIMs was degraded during the heating process. It is suggested that the degradation may mainly be attributed to the interfacial reaction between the Cu and the molten LMTAs. Due to the fast growth rate of intermetallic compound (IMC) at the solid–liquid interface, a thick brittle IMC is layer formed at the interface, which makes cracks easy to initiate and expand. Otherwise, the losses of indium and tin contents in the LMTA during the interfacial reaction will make the melting point of the TIM layer increase, and so, the TIM layer will not melt at the operating temperature.

Key words: Thermal interface materials, Low melting point alloy, Thermal resistance

E. Yang, Hongyan Guo, Jingdong Guo, Jianku Shang, Mingguang Wang. Thermal Performance of Low-Melting-Temperature Alloy Thermal Interface Materials[J]. Acta Metallurgica Sinica (English Letters), 2014, 27(2): 290-294.

Figures/Tables 8

Fig. 1 Diagram illustrating the waviness and roughness of two contacting surfaces

Table 1 Basic properties of SnInBi alloy

Property	17Sn26In57Bi	17Sn51In32Bi	Cu
Density, ρ, (g/cm³)	8.54	8.057	8.95
Specific heat, C, (JK^-1 g^-1)	0.169	0.197	0.380
Melting temperature (°C)	80.3	60.1	1,083
Thermal conductivity, λ, (WK^-1 m^-1)	8.97	20.9	386

Fig. 2 Schematic of trilayered model

Fig. 3 Schematic of laser flash method test instruments

Fig. 4 Curves show the change of thermal resistance after aging for different times

Fig. 5 SEM images of the Cu/17Sn26In57Bi/Cu samples: a as reflowed state; b aging at 100 °C for 200 h; c aging at 100 °C for 500 h

Fig. 6 SEM images of the Cu/17Sn51In32Bi/Cu samples: a as reflowed state; b aging at 100 °C for 200 h; c aging at 100 °C for 500 h

Fig. 7 SEM image of failed Cu/17Sn51In32Bi/Cu sandwiched sample after aging at 150 °C for 400 h

References 9

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Thermal Performance of Low-Melting-Temperature Alloy Thermal Interface Materials

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