Plating method to reduce or eliminate voids in solder applied without flux
A method of plating a copper substrate with gold that reduces or eliminates the presence of microvoids at the interface of the gold/copper substrate is described. Suitably, live entry of the substrate into the plating bath is performed with application of external current to the bath such that no portion of the substrate is exposed to the bath for more than one second without the application of the external current. Increase of the applied current for gold strike to the mass-transfer-limit for gold reduction accomplishes the full measure of improvement in eliminating microvoids.
1. A method of plating at least one metal selected from the group consisting of platinum, palladium, silver, and gold on a copper substrate comprising:
vertically lowering the copper substrate into a strike bath such that a surface of the copper substrate to be plated is substantially perpendicular to an upper surface of the strike bath as it is lowered, the strike bath containing the at least one metal as an only plating metal and an acid for maintaining the at least one metal in solution;
applying a first current through the strike bath to plate a strike onto the copper substrate, wherein the current is generated by an anode located at a predetermined distance from the upper surface of the strike bath such that a full amount of the first current is applied to the copper substrate within 1 second of immersion in the strike bath, the predetermined distance based on a speed of the lowering;
horizontally moving the copper substrate with the strike into a plating bath; and
applying a second current through the plating bath sufficient to form a plating over the strike, wherein a current density of the first current is 2-10 times greater than a current density of the second current.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the at least one metal is gold.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the current density of the first current is raised to a point wherein a metal mass-transfer-limit is exceeded.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the current density of the first current is raised to a range of 6-12 amps per square foot (ASF).
5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the strike bath comprises ions selected from the group consisting of Au(CN) 2 − , Au(CN) 4 − , AuCl 4 − , and AuSO 3 − .