Pt thin-film metallization for FC-bonding using SnPb60/40 solder bump metallurgy

Abstract Platinum does not form any adherent oxides and can be easily wetted by tin-based solders. Platinum is also an available metallization in semiconductor laboratories. Therefore we investigated the diffusion of platinum thin-film metallizations into eutectic tin–lead solder by using a high-resolution secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS) profiling from the back side. It is shown that an intermetallic phase (PtSn 4 ) is formed during soldering, which controls the consumption of platinum during soldering and in operation. The consumption of platinum follows the well-known parabolic diffusion law. The activation energy of this process is 0.63 eV. Even at extended heating cycles of 2 min at 250°C, 190 nm from the original 300 nm of the platinum film remain undissolved. This high stability makes platinum a very attractive thin-film metallization for flip-chip (FC) bonding of new microsystems.