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Crystal Structure of Cu-Sn-In Alloys Around the η-Phase Field Studied by Neutron Diffraction

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Abstract

Study of the Cu-Sn-In ternary system has become quite important in recent years, due to new environmental regulations increasingly restricting use of Pb for bonding technologies in electronic devices. A key relevant issue concerns the intermetallic phases which grow in the bonding zone and strongly affect its quality and performance. In this work, we focus on the η-phase (Cu2In or Cu6Sn5) that exists in both end binaries and as a ternary phase. We present a neutron diffraction study of the constitution and crystallography of a series of alloys around the 60 at.% Cu composition, and with In contents ranging from 0 at.% to 25 at.%, quenched from 300°C. The alloys were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), electron probe microanalysis (EPMA), and high-resolution neutron diffraction (ND). Rietveld refinement of ND data allowed improvement of the currently available model for site occupancies in the hexagonal η-phase in the binary Cu-Sn as well as in ternary alloys. For the first time, structural data are reported for the ternary Cu-Sn-In η-phase as a function of composition, information that is of fundamental technological importance as well as valuable for ongoing modeling of the ternary phase diagram.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Centro Atómico Bariloche, Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica, Av. Bustillo 9500, S. C. de Bariloche, RN, 8400, Argentina

    G. Aurelio

  2. IDEPA, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Facultad de Ingeniería, Universidad Nacional del Comahue, 8300, Buenos Aires 1400, Neuquén, Argentina

    S.A. Sommadossi

  3. Institut Laue Langevin, Grenoble, 38042, France

    G.J. Cuello

Authors
  1. G. Aurelio
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  2. S.A. Sommadossi
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  3. G.J. Cuello
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Correspondence to G. Aurelio.

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Aurelio, G., Sommadossi, S. & Cuello, G. Crystal Structure of Cu-Sn-In Alloys Around the η-Phase Field Studied by Neutron Diffraction. J. Electron. Mater. 41, 3223–3231 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-012-2193-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11664-012-2193-4

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