Pb-free Soldering Alternatives For Fine Pitched Electronics Packaging

The possibility of a ban of Pb has forced the electronics industry to search for alternatives for Pb-based solders. We present a discussion of several of these alternatives and present preliminary results of experiments aimed at developing these solutions. Experimental results presented include an assessment of the strain rate sensitivity of Sn-Bi solder joints; the wetting properties of Sn-Bi solders on bare and hot-dipped Cu surfaces; and the development of a laser soldering process for fine pitched SMT using Sn-Ag solders.