| The aim of this dissertation is to develop electrically or thermally conductive materials that are needed for electronic packaging and microelectronic cooling. These materials are in the form of coatings and are made from pastes. The research work encompasses paste formulation, studying the process of converting a paste to a conductive material, relating the processing conditions to the structure and performance, and evaluating performance attributes that are relevant to the application of these conductive materials. The research has resulted in new information that is valuable to the microelectronic industry.; Work on electrically conductive materials emphasizes the development of electrical interconnection materials in the form of air-firable glass-free silver-based electrically conductive thick films, which use the Ti-Al alloy as the binder and are in contrast to conventional films that use glass as the binder. The air-firability, as enabled by minor additions of tin and zinc to the paste, is in contrast to previous glass-free films that are not firable. The recommended firing condition is 930°C in air. The organic vehicle in the paste comprises ethyl cellulose, which undergoes thermal decomposition during burnout of the paste. The ethyl cellulose is dissolved in ether, which facilitates the burnout. Excessive ethyl cellulose hinders the burnout. A higher heating rate results in more residue after burnout. The presence of silver particles facilitates drying and burnout. Firing in air gives lower resistivity than firing in oxygen. Firing in argon gives poor films. Compared to conventional films that use glass as the binder, these films, when appropriately fired, exhibit lower electrical resistivity (2.5 x 10-6 O.cm) and higher scratch resistance.; Work on thermally conductive materials addresses thermal interface materials, which are materials placed at the interface between a heat sink and a heat source for the purpose of improving the thermal contact. Heat dissipation is the most critical problem in the microelectronic industry. This work emphasizes the development of thermal interface materials in the form of phase change materials, namely paraffin wax, which melts at 48°C. The addition of boron nitride particles to the wax improves the performance, as indicated by the thermal contact conductance between copper surfaces. The melting of the wax improves the conformability of the thermal interface material, thereby enhancing the conductance. Pressure applied in the direction perpendicular to the plane of the interface also enhances the conductance. With 15 wt. % BN and a pressure of 0.3 MPa, a thermal contact conductance comparable to that attained by using solder (applied in the molten state) as the thermal interface material has been attained. |
