Investigation of thermal and mechanical properties of Sn-Zn and Sn-Zn- Bi near-eutectic solder alloys

Evaluation of the microstructure, thermal, and mechanical characteristics of Sn-9Zn reinforced with Ni and ZrO2 nanoparticles via vacuum melting process

“…Therefore, many researchers conducted a lot of experiments to get the desired properties of leadbased solders without lead itself, such as melting point, appropriate mechanical properties, and cheap cost owing to the economic revolution nowadays, high performance, and electrical properties [1,8]. Sn-Zn alloys are popular with their magnificent mechanical properties, low melting temperature about 198.5 °C, which makes it closely related to Sn-37Pb (183 °C) solder alloy [9], and low cost, which initiate and encourage them to meet the great challenges of the new lead-free solder development [10,11]. Therefore, Sn-Zn alloys are an advantageous choice due to their economical properties as Zn is an inexpensive metal, which is considered one of the most crucial factors in sorting out the solder materials, besides their high wettability and good ductility this is supposed to have significant influence over the formation of reliable solder connections, especially in lowvolume applications such as robotics, automated processes, and electronic service [12][13][14].…”

“…In view of that, alloying elements such as Bi [9,17], Ag, Cu [18], Ni [4,19,20], and other rare earth elements were selected as alloying additions to the Sn-Zn solder alloy in order to modify the composition. The added trace elements may form strong compounds by reaction with zinc [18], limiting its activity [21], reducing its melting point [10], and forming intermetallic compounds that enhancement the solder's mechanical properties [22]. As continuous development of solder is urgent, necessary, and required in order to generate and innovate more advanced electronic devices, a bridge between reinforcement, enhancement, and the solder matrix should be established.…”