Undercooled liquid metallic droplets having a protective shell
AssigneeIndium Corporation of America
InventorsMartin Thuo, Ian Tevis
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A droplet comprises a core including an alloy comprising a majority of a first metallic element and a minority of a second element, wherein the core is in a liquid state below a solidus temperature of the alloy. A shell is arranged to enclose the core and includes an exterior surface comprising a majority of the second element and a minority of the first metallic element, wherein the shell is in a solid state below the solidus temperature of the alloy. The alloy can comprise a solder material that can be used to form solder connections below a solidus temperature of the alloy.
Claims20
A droplet comprising:
- a core including an alloy comprising a majority of a first metallic element and a minority of a second element, wherein the core is in a liquid state below a solidus temperature of the alloy;
- and
- a shell fully enclosing the core and including an exterior surface comprising a majority of the second element and a minority of the first metallic element, wherein the shell is in a solid state below the solidus temperature of the alloy.
A method of forming a droplet, the method comprising:
- forming a liquid core of the droplet from an alloy including a first element, a second element and a third element;
- forming a solid shell around and fully enclosing the liquid core, the solid shell comprising an innermost layer having a predominant concentration of one of the first, the second or the third elements and an outermost layer having a predominant concentration of a different one of the first, the second or the third elements;
- and
- cooling the liquid core and the solid shell below a solidus temperature of the alloy while maintaining the core in a liquid state.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.