Observations of the spontaneous growth of tin whiskers in various reliability conditions

This study evaluated the growth of tin whiskers on tin plated Alloy 42 lead-frames and copper lead-frames stored in ambient conditions for 4 years, samples stored in ambient conditions after a post-bake treatment, and stored at 55±1 °C/85±3% conditions for 3000 hours. Analysis was conducted to investigate the propensity and the mechanisms of growth.