Title :
Migration of Sintered Nanosilver on Alumina and Aluminum Nitride Substrates at High Temperatures in Dry Air for Electronic Packaging
Author :
Guo-Quan Lu ; Wen Yang ; Yun-Hui Mei ; Xin Li ; Gang Chen ; Xu Chen
Author_Institution :
Sch. of Mater. Sci. & Eng., Tianjin Univ., Tianjin, China
Abstract :
Joining semiconductor chips at low temperature (below 523 K) by sintering nanosilver paste is emerging as an alternative lead-free solution for power electronic packaging, particularly in high-temperature applications, because of the high melting temperature of silver (1234 K). However, silver is susceptible to migration. In this paper, we study the effects of dc bias, electrode spacing, and temperature on migration of sintered nanosilver on alumina (Al2O3) and aluminum nitride (AlN) substrates. The “lifetime” of silver migration, which is defined as the time at which the leakage current reaches 1 mA, increases with decreasing bias voltage and temperature but with increasing spacing between the nanosilver electrodes. The lifetime of silver migration on the AlN substrate is much longer than that on the Al2O3 substrate. A phenomenological model is proposed to predict well the lifetime of migration of sintered nanosilver on both the AlN and Al2O3 substrates in dry air. The activation energy of silver migration of sintered nanosilver on both Al2O3 and AlN is also obtained and discussed.
Keywords :
alumina; leakage currents; nanofabrication; power electronics; silver; sintering; thermal management (packaging); Al2O3; AlN; DC bias effects; activation energy; alumina substrates; aluminum nitride substrates; current 1 mA; dry air; electrode spacing; high melting temperature; high temperatures; high-temperature applications; lead-free solution; leakage current; nanosilver electrodes; nanosilver paste sintering; phenomenological model; power electronic packaging; semiconductor chips; silver migration lifetime; sintered nanosilver migration; temperature 1234 K; Aluminum oxide; Educational institutions; Electrodes; III-V semiconductor materials; Leakage currents; Silver; Substrates; Activation energy; activation energy; aluminum nitride (AlN); high temperature biased testing; lifetime prediction; power electronics;
Journal_Title :
Device and Materials Reliability, IEEE Transactions on
DOI :
10.1109/TDMR.2014.2304737