As the world moves under RoHS compliance from tin/lead plating to pure tin plating, engineers must find new ways to mitigate tin whisker formation.  Tin whiskers are electrically conductive, crystalline structures of tin that often grow perpendicular to surfaces of electroplated tin.

Tin whiskers can be caused by internal stresses created during the electroplating process and have caused short circuits responsible for numerous electronic system failures.

The incorporation of lead in the deposit has been the traditional solution to tin whisker formation; with RoHs compliance regulations requiring the removal of lead from most tin plating applications, the problem of tin whisker formation requires new solutions.

Precious Plate reduces tin whiskers with tin reflow

For applications such as telecommunications connectors, aerospace, avionics, and automotive sensor systems, and numerous other extremely compact devices where tin whisker growth poses a potential shorting risk, Precious Plate offers a tin reflow process that can mitigate tin whisker formation. 

How the tin reflow plating process works

After being plated with tin, continuous coil-stock or stamped parts are run through a reflow chamber where the tin is heated to its melting point and then cooled. This procedure relieves the internal stresses within the tin deposit that can be responsible for tin whisker growth. Precious Plate, in conjunction with its sister company Precision Process Inc., have developed state of the art equipment to ensure the highest possible consistency and efficiency during the tin reflow process.

The benefits of tin reflow plating

• Mitigation of tin whiskers
• Improved solderability
• Reduced insertion force
• Excellent formability during stamping

Contact us to discuss your custom industrial tin reflow plating project today!