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Evidence of electric-field-accelerated growth of tin whiskers

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 September 2015

Anthony C. Vasko ,
Corey R. Grice ,
Andrew D. Kostic  and
Victor G. Karpov
Anthony C. Vasko
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Toledo, Toledo, OH 43606, USA
Corey R. Grice
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Toledo, Toledo, OH 43606, USA
Andrew D. Kostic
Affiliation:
Aerospace Corporation, 14745 Lee Road, Chantilly, VA 20151, USA
Victor G. Karpov*
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Toledo, Toledo, OH 43606, USA
*
Address all correspondence to Victor G. Karpov atvictor.karpov@utoledo.edu
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Abstract

This paper presents experimental results supporting a theory that electric fields accelerate the growth of tin (Sn) whiskers. We have rapidly (within one week) grown long (~100 µm) and dense (~300 mm−2) whiskers on thin Sn films. Humidity and an applied electric field are found to have a strong effect when applied together, making whiskers orders of magnitude longer and denser. An evidence of explosive whisker development is presented.

Type
Research Letters
Information
MRS Communications , Volume 5 , Issue 4 , December 2015 , pp. 619 - 622
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2015 

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