I recently visited a customer to help optimize a flux-less indium soldering application. They admitted they needed flux but didn’t know 1) what to use, or 2) if there was a better way to fix the problem.
(Flashback 1 year…)
While having a technical discussion with a head engineer regarding future products, we agreed that it would be a good idea to have a water-soluble and a no-clean flux on hand for prototyping. He never mentioned that he was going to actually order the material, so I thought he would try it on an as-needed basis.
(Back to July 2008)
We were stuck in a situation where it would have been great to know the full issue ahead of time and send in the cavalry (ball attach fluxes), but we were a little blindsided since we actually were there for a different issue. I mentioned how it would have been great to carry in fluxes and they mentioned that they had a supply of Indium flux on hand! We were blessed with the luxury of having the best all-around ball attach fluxes right there for the indium thermal interface application.
These semiconductor grade tacky-type fluxes are worth every penny, they are like a Boy Scout’s Swiss Army knife. It worked for this customer, and having a small stock of multipurpose flux can work for you too.