High resolution morphological changes of Cu, Ni, Al, and Au surfaces due to atmospheric corrosion
Date
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.
Facultad de Ingenierías
Facultad de Ingenierías
Abstract
Description
As atmospheric corrosion of electrical contacts is a common cause of failure in electronics industry and at the same time miniaturization is a requirement in any modern electronic device, it is important to study the effects of corrosion in the surface morphology of metals widely used in that industry sector, such as gold, copper, nickel, and aluminium. Here, atomic force microscopy (AFM) has been used with that purpose, analysing flat surfaces of those metals both before and after exposure by several weeks to the effects of a contaminated atmosphere containing both NO2 and SO2 at constant temperature and humidity. Results indicate all metals suffered changes both in surface morphology and roughness. AFM phase mode images also indicated the occurrence of different species on the Ni and Cu surfaces after 11 weeks of exposure. Evidence of defects due to the corrosion attack was only observed for Ni. © 2017 IEEE.
Keywords
Aluminum, Atmospheric corrosion, Copper, Electrical contacts, Gold, Nickel, Aluminum, Atmospheric humidity, Atomic force microscopy, Copper, Corrosion, Electric contacts, Electronics industry, Gold, Nickel, Nitrogen compounds, Surface morphology, Constant temperature, Corrosion attack, Electrical contacts, Electronic device, High resolution, Industry sectors, Morphological changes, Surface morphology and roughness, Atmospheric corrosion