Atmospheric corrosion resistance of electroplated Ni/Ni–P/Au electronic contacts

Abstract Atmospheric corrosion has vast consequences on the reliability of electronic connectors. This study determined the corrosion resistance of Ni/Ni–P plating metallurgy as a function of plating current density and plating thickness. Discrepancy was observed in the neutral salt spray (NSS) and mixed flowing gas (MFG) tests. Thicker Ni–P deposits displayed superior corrosion resistance in MFG tests while thinner Ni–P deposits performed better in NSS tests. This disparity was attributed to the intrinsic corrosion susceptibility of Ni–P against chlorine or sulfur assisted corrosion. Corrosion products were analysed for better understanding of the corrosion mechanism. NSS test produced green corrosion residues consisting of CuCl (nantokite) and CuCl 2 (OH) 3 (clinoatacamite) and brown residues consisting of Cu 2 O (cuprite). MFG test produced sulfides of copper (major) and nickel (minor).