Life prediction in c-Si solar cell interconnections under in-situ thermal cycling in Kumasi in Ghana

Purpose A numerical study on the reliability of soldered interconnects of c-Si solar photovoltaic cells has been conducted. Design/methodology/approach A three-year data (2012–2014) from outdoor weathering of PV modules was used to generate temperature cycle profiles to serve as thermal loads and boundary conditions for the investigation of the thermo-mechanical response of the soldered interconnects when subjected to real outdoor conditions using finite element analysis (FEA) Software (Ansys. 18.2). Two types of soldered interconnections, namely, Sn60Pb40 and Sn3.8Ag0.7Cu (Pb-free), were modelled in this study. Findings Life prediction results from accumulated creep energy density damage show that the solder interconnects will achieve maximum life under the 2014 thermal cycle loading. In particular, the Sn60Pb40 solder interconnection is expected to achieve 14,153 cycles (25.85 years) whilst the Pb-free solder interconnection is expected to achieve 9,249 cycles (16.89 years). Additionally, under the test region average (TRA) thermal cycle, the Pb-free and Pb-Sn solder interconnections are expected to achieve 7,944 cycles (13.69 years) and 12,814 cycles (23.4 years), respectively. The study shows that Sn60Pb40 solder interconnections are likely to exhibit superior reliability over the Pb-free solder interconnections at the test site. Practical implications This study would be useful to electronics manufacturing industry in the search for a suitable alternative to SnPb solders and also the thermo-mechanical reliability research community and manufacturers in the design of robust PV modules. Originality/value The study has provided TRA data/results which could be used to represent the test region instead of a particular year. The study also indicates that more than six thermal cycles are required before any meaningful conclusions can be drawn. Finally, the life of the two types of solders (SnPb and Pb-free) as interconnecting materials for c-Si PV have been predicted for the test region (Kumasi in sub-Saharan Africa).

Thermal Fatigue and Creep Fracture Behaviors of a Nanocomposite Solder in Microelectronic/Optoelectronic Packaging

Thermal fatigue performance and creep resistance of soldered connections are crucial to the integrity and reliability of microelectronics, optoelectronics and photonics packaging systems. In this work, creep and thermal fatigue behaviours of lap shear joints soldered by a tin-based nanocomposite solder were characterized at different temperatures, with a comparison to a traditional Sn60Pb40 solder. The results show that the nano-composite solder has much better creep resistance and thermal creep fatigue property than the Sn60Pb40 solder. This is mainly due to the uniformly dispersed nano-sized Ag particles that have provided effective impediment to dislocation movement and grain boundary sliding, in addition to the alloying effect. The creep fractography analysis by SEM shows that a progressive shear deformation occurred as the main creep fracture mechanism. Sn60Pb solder joints deform dominantly by transgranular sliding, while the nano-composite solder joints creep by intergranular mechanism through grain boundary sliding and voids growth.