At Indium Corporation, we believe that materials science changes the world. In recognition of the notable material behind our name, we will release monthly installments of the Elements of Indium Seriesan educational program to raise awareness of the unique applications, abundance, and interesting properties of the 49th element.
Plating with indium metal can be utilized for a number of diverse applications that take advantage of its unique physical and chemical properties.
Indium plating was first developed by Indium Corporation in the 1930s for depositing a thin coating of indium onto aircraft engine bearings. This reduced friction and wear by increasing the lubricity and corrosion resistance of the bearings, greatly improving the flight range.
Since then, applications increased to include plating for wafers, fuel pumps, jewelry, and seals (for those that come into contact with oxidizing gasses), as well as for battery parts, decorative finishes, and electrical interconnects. These applications take advantage of indium’s unique properties, such as:
- Extreme ductility and softness, even down to temperatures approaching absolute zero
- Cold welding properties
- Resistance to alkaline corrosion
- Ability to rapidly diffuse into certain metals, such as copper, silver, and lead for hardening
- Low melting temperature (157C)
- Low vapor pressure
- Low oxide formation
- Ability to wet to glass, certain metallic oxides, and glazed ceramics
- Ability to alloy with tin, bismuth, silver, and lead metallic layers at low temperatures to form new alloys with different physical properties
Metallic parts can be coated with indium using a solder reflow process. In those instances where a chemical flux cannot be used, or temperature limitations of the parts prohibit reflow coating, electroplating can be an alternate method to deposit indium. For high-volume indium plating applications, the indium sulfamate plating bath is a proven approach as one of the easiest and most stable baths to operate and maintain.
Indium Corporation is a global leader for indium metal and associated technologies. For more information on indium metal, visit www.indium.com/indium49.
關於 Indium Corporation
Indium Corporation 是全球電子、半導體、薄膜和熱管理市場的主要材料精煉商、冶煉商、製造商和供應商。產品包括焊料和助熔劑、钎料、熱介面材料、濺鍍靶材、铟、鎵、錫金屬和無機化合物以及 NanoFoil。公司成立於 1934 年，擁有全球性的技術支援，工廠分佈於中國、德國、印度、馬來西亞、新加坡、南韓、英國和美國。
For more information about Indium Corporation, visit www.indium.com or email Jingya Huang. You can also follow our experts, From One Engineer To Another (#FOETA), at www.linkedin.com/company/indium-corporation/ or @IndiumCorp.
