Solder Alternatives for the Transition to Flexible and Integrated Electronics Explained by IDTechEx

BOSTON, Oct. 6, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Attaching electronic components such as integrated circuits and LEDs to substrates is an essential aspect of electronics manufacturing. While conventional lead-free solder excels at the task for conventional rigid PCBs, it is not so well suited for emerging applications that require components to be attached to flexible substrates or conformal surfaces.

Component attachment landscape

Component attachment materials can be divided into two categories, as shown in the graphic.

Solder, formerly based on lead but now primarily lead-free, offers the twin advantages of being low-cost and well-established. Furthermore, the reflow process assists with component alignment, with components being reorientated to minimize the surface energy of the solder droplet. This self-alignment significantly reduces the resolution requirements of the pick-and-place process, enabling higher speed component placement.

However, solder has one key disadvantage. The reflow process generally requires high temperatures of around 250 C for widely used SAC (tin/silver/copper) solder, and also requires time-consuming thermal ramps. As such it's not applicable for thermally fragile substrates such as PET, and nor is it compatible with either high-speed roll-to-roll (R2R) manufacturing or 3D additive electronics. Note that ultra-low temperature solders have recently been developed to improve compatibility with polymeric substrates but have yet to gain widespread acceptance.

The high temperature and time-consuming reflow process leaves space for electrically conductive adhesives (ECAs), discussed in detail in IDTechEx's new report "Electrically Conductive Adhesives 2022-2032: Technologies, Markets, and Forecasts". Rather than being a metal alloy like solder, ECAs comprise a metal powder embedded within a polymer resin.

Although more expensive and without the benefit of self-alignment, ECAs enable components to be immediately attached to the substrate and don't require either high reflow temperatures or lengthy thermal ramps. They are thus highly unlikely to replace solder for conventional PCBs, but are predicted to increase their market share with the transition towards integrated and flexible electronics.

Furthermore, anisotropic conductive adhesives ACAs enable a lower pitch capacity than the more common isotropic conductive adhesives (ICAs). At present, ACAs (which are supplied as either films or pastes) require high temperature and pressure to be applied during component placement, increasing both manufacturing costs and the risk of component damage. However, the emerging technology of 'field-aligned conductive adhesives' removes this constraint since anisotropic conductivity is induced prior to attachment.

Emerging applications for ECAs

ECAs are very well suited to applications that require electronic components to be mounted on anything other than a conventional FR4 substrate, especially when the substrate material is thermally fragile.

A promising emerging application for ECAs is in-mold electronics (IME), used to make decorative surfaces with integrated capacitive touch sensing and lighting. Automotive interiors are the major use case, with the total IME market forecast to reach around $1.5bn by 2032. IME components are manufactured by screen printing conductive ink onto a flat (usually polycarbonate) substrate, after which electronic components are mounted. ECAs are used as the polycarbonate would not withstand the high solder reflow temperatures.

Another promising ECA application is flexible hybrid electronics (FHE), a developing approach which can be regarded as taking the 'best-of-both' from conventional and printed electronics. This requires components to be mounted onto flexible substrates with printed conductive traces, with ECAs (or alternatively ultra-low temperature solder) required so as not to damage low-cost PET substrates.

A very specific use case for ECAs is stretchable electronics, required for e-textiles and some electronic skin patches. This will require slightly stretchable component attachment solutions. Since the mechanical properties of ECAs are largely dependent on the properties of the polymer resin, slight stretchability can be introduced by using an elastomeric material.

Overview

IDTechEx's new report "Electrically Conductive Adhesives 2022-2032: Technologies, Markets, and Forecasts" maps the current market landscape for ECAs (both ICA and ACA), and forecasts market growth across eleven application categories. This includes both established applications such as RFID tags and also emerging sectors such as printed/flexible electronics. The report provides technological details (including of innovative field-aligned electronically conductive adhesives), multiple application examples, and application-specific ECA requirements. Further details and downloadable sample pages can be found at www.IDTechEx.com/ECA. 

About IDTechEx 

IDTechEx guides your strategic business decisions through its Research, Subscription and Consultancy products, helping you profit from emerging technologies. For more information, contact research@IDTechEx.com or visit www.IDTechEx.com. 

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