Effect of fretting in lead-free systems

Electrical performance characteristics of lead-free solders and their potential effects on the reliability of electronic connector separable interfaces is one of the problem areas that has to be addressed. Since fretting is inherent in practically all electronic and electrical connections it is the aim of this work to determine the effect of fretting in commercially available lead-free alloys. For this purpose a number of lead-free alloy wires are subjected to fretting under different conditions such as different mating materials and contact load. Following the fretting tests, the contact zones damaged by the fretting action were subjected to detailed metallographic, scanning electron microscope (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) analyses which, in turn, enabled to make a comparative assessment of the lead-free alloys used in respect to their susceptibility to fretting.