Grain orientation evolution and deformation behaviors in Pb-free solder interconnects under mechanical stresses

In this study, the effect of mechanical stresses on the recrystallization behavior of Sn-3.0Ag-0.5Cu Pb-free solder interconnects was studied by four-point cyclic bending, shear tests, and tensile tests. Scanning electronic microscopy with electron backscattered diffraction was used to characterize the microstructure and crystallographic orientation of the solder interconnects. The results show that recrystallization occurs under the different mechanical stresses in these tests at room temperature, and that recrystallized grains evolve from subgrains by rotation. Microhardness measurements after shear tests show that the hardness of the recrystallized microstructure was decreased by 15% and 41%, respectively, compared with that of the nonrecrystallized and as-solidified microstructures. Furthermore, the fine-grained microstructure produced after recrystallization facilitated grain boundary sliding. Therefore, the deformation and cracking behaviors were localized in the degraded recrystallized microstructures once recrystallization occurred, accelerating failure of the solder interconnects.