Reactive wetting of solid-liquid interfaces in the Au-Sn alloy system

• Applicants: Privatdozent Dr. Jürgen Brillo; Professorin Dr. Britta Nestler
• Subject Area: Thermodynamics and Kinetics as well as Properties of Phases and Microstructure of Materials ; Mechanical Properties of Metallic Materials and their Microstructural Origins
• Term: from 2012 to 2017
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 229606216

In numerous technically relevant processes as, for instance, soldering, welding, or sintering, the course of of wetting processes at solid-liquid interfaces of metallic alloys determines the mechanical properties of the bond. As there is no sufficient tool for the prediction of wetting processes in technical applications, we aim to obtain an understanding of interface formation in this project. The envisaged extension of the phase field method will allow a 3D simulation of the dynamic evolution of capillary forces, convective and diffusive processes, and interfaces on a mesoscopic scale. By suitable formulation of temperature and concentration dependent material properties, reactive wetting is to be analyzed on the example of Au-Sn. Thermophysical properties, needed for the simulation, will be determined in parallel experiments. In addition, the comparison of calculated contact angles, concentration profiles, and droplet shapes with those experimentally obtained will provide a reference for the validation and optimization of the phase field method.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants