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Introduction: Whiskers and Their Role in Component Reliability

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Factors Governing Tin Whisker Growth

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Abstract

Tin (Sn) whiskers are electrically conductive, single crystal eruptions that can grow from surfaces where tin is deposited on a substrate surface. They present reliability problems for the electronics industry due to the formation of stable, bridging shorts in low voltage, high impedance circuits. Continuing reports of Sn whisker-induced failures coupled with the lack of an industry-accepted understanding of tin whisker growth and/or test methods to identify whisker-prone products has made blanket acceptance of pure tin plating a risky proposition in high reliability systems. Special attention has been devoted to measurements of whiskering under a variety of rigorously controlled environmental factors such as substrate roughness, Sn film thickness (and depletion due to whisker growth), gas environment, humidity, film stress state and Sn oxides, which are known to play a significant role in whisker production. This research is designed to clarify and control the mechanisms that govern whisker formation, with an ultimate objective to discover how to impede and/or prevent whisker growth, either by surface coatings or by modifications of the thin film properties.

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  1. Department of Physics, Center for Advanced Vehicle and Extreme Environment Electonics (CAVE3), Auburn University, 206 Allison Lab, Auburn, AL, 36849, USA

    Erika R. Crandall

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Crandall, E.R. (2013). Introduction: Whiskers and Their Role in Component Reliability. In: Factors Governing Tin Whisker Growth. Springer Theses. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-00470-9_1

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