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Surface properties and solderability behaviour of nickel–phosphorus and nickel–boron deposited by electroless plating
Author(s) -
Chow Y. M.,
Lau W. M.,
Karim Z. S.
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
surface and interface analysis
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.52
H-Index - 90
eISSN - 1096-9918
pISSN - 0142-2421
DOI - 10.1002/sia.980
Subject(s) - solderability , wetting , nickel , x ray photoelectron spectroscopy , materials science , metallurgy , oxide , plating (geology) , chemical engineering , soldering , composite material , geophysics , engineering , geology
X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), scanning Auger microscopy (SAM), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and wetting force measurements have been applied to various nickel deposits prepared by standard electroless plating for probing the origins of solderability behaviour of ‘electroless nickel’. By controlling the plating chemicals and plating conditions, three kinds of electroless nickel deposits have been prepared, namely electroless nickel–high phosphorus (EN‐HP), electroless nickel–low phosphorus (EN‐LP) and electroless nickel–boron (EN‐B). Wetting balance measurements confirmed the solderability strength decreased in the order of EN−B>EN−LP>EN−HP. Unexpectedly, among the three EN deposits, EN‐B was found by XPS to have the thickest surface oxide, which opposes the traditional correlation of good solderability with thin surface oxide. On the other hand, SAM and AFM studies showed that the average nodule size increased in the order of EN−B