Recent Advances in Interface Modification of Cu/graphite Composites and Layered Ternary Carbides of Modified Layer Candidate

We review the fundamental properties and significant issues related to Cu/graphite composites.In particular,recent research on the interfacial modification of Cu/graphite composites is addressed,including the metal-modified layer,carbide-modified layer,and combined modified layer.Additionally,we propose the use of ternary layered carbide as an interface modification layer for Cu/graphite composites.

Microstructure and properties of Cu matrix composites reinforced with surface-modified Kovar particles

The thermal conductivity of Cu/Kovar composites was improved by suppressing element diffusion at the interfaces through the formation of FeWO_(4)coating on the Kovar particles via vacuum deposition.Cu matrix composites reinforced with unmodified(Cu/Kovar)and modified Kovar(Cu/Kovar@)particles were prepared by hot pressing.The results demonstrate that the interfaces of Cu/FeWO_(4)and FeWO_(4)/Kovar in the Cu/Kovar@composites exhibit strong bonding,and no secondary phase is generated.The presence of FeWO_(4)impedes interfacial diffusion within the composite,resulting in an increase in grain size and a decrease in dislocation density.After surface modification of the Kovar particle,the thermal conductivity of Cu/Kovar@composite is increased by 110%from 40.6 to 85.6 W·m^(-1)·K^(-1).Moreover,the thermal expansion coefficient of the Cu/Kovar@composite is 9.8×10^(-6)K^(-1),meeting the electronic packaging requirements.

Morphology and Frictional Characteristics Under Electrical Currents of Al_2O_3/Cu Composites Prepared by Internal Oxidation

Two Al2O3/Cu composites containing 0.24 wt.% Al2O3 and 0.60 wt.% Al2O3 separately are prepared by internal oxidation. Effects of sliding speed and pressure on the frictional characteristics of the composites and copper against brass are investigated and compared. The changes in morphology of the sliding surface and subsurface are examined with scanning electron microscope （SEM） and energy dispersive X-ray spectrum （EDS）. The results show that the wear resistance of the Al2O3/Cu composites is superior to that of copper under the same conditions, Under a given electrical current, the wear rate of Al2O3/Cu composites decreases as the Al2O3-content increases, However, the wear rates of the Al2O3/Cu composites and copper increase as the sliding speed and pressure increase under dry sliding condition. The main wear mechanisms for Al2O3/Cu composites are of abrasion and adhesion; for copper, it is adhesion, although wear by oxidation and electrical erosion can also be observed as the speed and pressure rise.

Properties and microstructure of Cu/diamond composites prepared by spark plasma sintering method

Cu/diamond composites have been considered as the next generation of thermal management material for electronic packages and heat sinks applications. Cu/diamond composites with different volume fractions of diamond were successfully prepared by spark plasma sintering（SPS） method. The sintering temperatures and volume fractions（50%, 60% and 70%） of diamond were changed to investigate their effects on the relative density, homogeneity of the microstructure and thermal conductivity of the composites. The results show that the relative density, homogeneity of the microstructure and thermal conductivity of the composites increase with decreasing the diamond volume fraction; the relative density and thermal conductivity of the composites increase with increasing the sintering temperature. The thermal conductivity of the composites is a result of the combined effect of the volume fraction of diamond, the homogeneity and relative density of the composites.

Effects of rolling and annealing on microstructures and properties of Cu/Invar electronic packaging composites prepared by powder metallurgy

The Cu/Invar composites of 40% Cu were prepared by powder metallurgy, and the composites were rolled with 70% reduction and subsequently annealed at 750 ℃. Phases, microstructures and properties of the composites were then studied. After that, the amount of a-Fe（Ni,Co） in the composites is reduced, because a-Fe（Ni,Co） partly transfers into y-Fe（Ni,Co） through the diffusion of the Ni atoms into a-Fe（Ni,Co） from Cu. When the rolling reduction is less than 40%, the deformation of Cu takes place, resulting in the movement of the Invar particles and the seaming of the pores. When the rolling reduction is in the range from 40% to 60%, the deformations of Invar and Cu occur simultaneously to form a streamline structure. After rolling till 70% and subsequent annealing, the Cu/Invar composites have fine comprehensive properties with a relative density of 98.6%, a tensile strength of 360 MPa, an elongation rate of 50%, a thermal conductivity of 25.42 W/（m.K） （as-tested） and a CTE of 10.79× 10-6/K （20-100 ℃）.

Mechanical properties of Cu based composites reinforced by carbon nanotubes

Cu based composites reinforced by 0%～25% (volume fraction) carbon nanotubes were prepared.The fracture behaviors and the rolling properties of the composites and the effects of the volume fraction of the carbon nanotubes were studied.The experimental results show that the fracture toughness of the composites is related to the pulling out and bridging of the carbon nanotubes in the fracture process.With the volume fraction of the carbon nanotubes increasing, the Vicker’s hardness and the compactness of the composites increase first and then decrease. The peaks of the hardness and the compactness occur at 12%～15% of volume fraction of carbon nanotubes.Some proper ratio of rolling reduction benefits to the comprehensive mechanical properties of the composites.

Effects of intermediate Ni layer on mechanical properties of Al–Cu layered composites fabricated through cold roll bonding

Layered composites have attracted considerable interest in the recent literature on metal composites. Their mechanical properties depend on the quality of the bonding provided by the intermediate layers. In this study, we analyzed the mechanical properties and bond strengths provided by the nickel layer with respect to its thickness and nature(either powder or coating). The results suggest that bond strength decreases with an increase in the content of nickel powder. At 0.3 vol% of nickel coating, we found the nature of nickel to be less efficient in terms of bond strength. A different picture arose when the content of nickel was increased and the bond strength increased in nickel coated samples. In addition, the results demonstrate that mechanical properties such as bend strength are strongly dependent on bond strength.

Self-propagating High-temperature Synthesis, Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of TiC-TiB_2-Cu Composites

TiC-TiB2-Cu composites were produced by self-propagating high-temperature synthesis combined with pseudo hot isostatic pressing using Ti, B4C and Cu powders. The microstructure and mechanical properties of the composites were investigated. The X-ray diffraction （XRD） and scanning electron microscopy （SEM） results showed that the final products were only TiC, TiB2 and Cu phases. The clubbed TiB2 grains and spheroidal or irregular TiC grains were found in the microstructure of synthesized products. The reaction temperature and grain size of TiB2 and TiC particles decreased with increasing Cu content. The introduction of Cu into the composites resulted in a drastic increase in the relative density and flexual strength, and the maximum values were obtained with the addition of 20 wt pct, while the fracture toughness was the best when Cu content was 40 wt pct.

Thermal expansion and mechanical properties of high reinforcement content SiC_(p)/Cu composites fabricated by squeeze casting technology

High reinforcement content SiCp/Cu composites (φp=50%, 55% and 60%) for electronic packaging applications were fabricated by patent cost-effective squeeze-casting technology. The composites appear to be free of pores, and the SiC particles are distribute uniformly in the composites. The mean linear coefficients of thermal expansion (CTEs, 20-100 ℃ ) of as-cast SiCp/Cu composites range from 8.8×10-6 ℃-1 to 9.9×10-6 ℃-1 and decrease with the increase of SiC content. The experimental CTEs of as-cast SiCp/Cu composites agree well with the predicted values based on Kerner model. The CTEs of composites reduce after annealing treatment due to the fact that the internal stress of the composite is released. The Brinell hardness increases from 272.3 to 313.2, and the modulus increases from 186 GPa to 210 GPa for the corresponding composites. The bending strength is larger than 374 MPa, but no obvious trend between bending strength and SiCp content is observed.

Reaction thermodynamics and kinetics on in situ Al_2O_3/Cu composites

The preferred internal oxidation of aluminum in Cu Al alloy was used to obtain in situ Al 2O 3/Cu composites. The reinforcement particles were mainly γ Al 2O 3, some θ Al 2O 3 and a little α Al 2O 3. Thermodynamics analyses show that the chemical reactions are 3Cu 2O+2Al=6Cu+Al 2O 3 or 3CuO+2Al=3Cu+Al 2O 3. A related equilibrium diagram was drawn. The experiments and investigation show that the formation rate of Al 2O 3 was controlled by the diffusion of oxygen in matrix.

Tribological behavior of CNTs-Cu and graphite-Cu composites with electric current

CNTs-Cu and graphite-Cu composites were separately prepared by powder metallurgy technique under the same consolidation processing. Tribological behavior of the composites with electric current was investigated by using a pin-on-disk friction and wear tester. The results show that the friction coefficient and wear rate of the composites decrease with increasing the reinforcement content, and increase with increasing the electric current density; the effects of electric current are more obvious on tribological properties of graphite-Cu composites than on CNTs-Cu composites; for graphite-Cu composites the dominant wear mechanisms are electric arc erosion and adhesive wear, while for CNTs-Cu composites are adhesive wear.

A Novel Technique for Preparation of Electrically Conductive ABS/Cu Polymeric Gradient Composites

A novel technique for preparing functionally gradient electrically conductive polymeric composites was developed by using of solution casting technique on the principle of Stokes＇ law. Acrylonitrile- butadiene-styrene/Cu （ABS/Cu） gradient polymeric composites were prepared successfully using this technique. The gradient structures, electrically conductive performance and mechanical properties of the ABS/Cu composites were investigated. Optical microscope observation shows that the gradient distribution of Cu particles in ABS matrix was formed along their thickness-direction. The electrically conductive testing results indicate that the order of magnitude of surface resistivity was kept in 10^15 Ω at ABS rich side, while that declined to 10^5 Ω at Cu particles rich side, and the percolation threshold was in the range of 2.82 vo1%- 4.74 vol% Cu content at Cu particles rich side. Mechanical test shows that the tensile strength reduced insignificantly as the content of Cu increases owing to the gradient distribution.

Effect of aging treatment on mechanical properties of (SiCw+SiCp)/2024Al hybrid nanocomposites

2024Al based composites reinforced by a hybrid of SiC whisker and SiC nanoparticle were fabricated by a squeeze casting route. In the (SiCw+SiCp)/Al composites, the volume fraction of SiC whisker is 20% and that of SiC nanoparticle is 2%, 5% and 7%, respectively. The as cast composites were solution treated followed by aging treatment. The experimental results show that the SiC nanoparticles are more effective in improving the hardness and tensile strength of the composites than SiC whiskers. The hardening kinetics of the composites is enhanced by reinforcements addition and the peak aging time is 4-5 h. The hardness of all the hybrid composite decreases at the initial aging stage, suggesting that dislocation recovery softening process coexists with precipitation hardening. DSC study shows that the GP zone formation of the hybrid composites is suppressed.

Effect of Ni-coated MoS2 on microstructure and tribological properties of(Cu−10Sn)-based composites

The(Cu−10Sn)−Ni−MoS2 composites,prepared by powder metallurgy,were studied for the effects of Ni-coated MoS2 on the microstructure,mechanical properties and lubricating properties.The mechanism of effects of Ni and MoS2 on the properties of composites was analyzed through a comparative experiment by adding Ni and MoS2 separately.The results show that the nickel wrapping around the MoS2 particles decreases the reaction rate of MoS2 with the copper matrix,and greatly improves the bonding of the matrix.The composites with 12 wt.%Ni-coated MoS2(C12)show the optimum performance including the mechanical properties and tribological behaviors.Under oil lubrication conditions,the friction coefficient is 0.0075 with a pressure of 8 MPa and a linear velocity of 0.25 m/s.The average dry friction coefficient,sliding against 40Cr steel disc,is measured to be 0.1769 when the linear velocity and pressure are 0.25 m/s and 4 MPa,respectively.

Process optimization,microstructures and mechanical/thermal properties of Cu/Invar bi-metal matrix composites fabricated by spark plasma sintering

An orthogonal experiment scheme was designed to investigate the effects of the Cu content,compaction pressure,and sintering temperature on the microstructures and mechanical and thermal properties of(30−50)wt.%Cu/Invar bi-metal matrix composites fabricated via spark plasma sintering(SPS).The results indicated that as the Cu content increased from 30 to 50 wt.%,a continuous Cu network gradually appeared,and the density,thermal conductivity(TC)and coefficient of thermal expansion of the composites noticeably increased,but the tensile strength decreased.The increase in the sintering temperature promoted the Cu/Invar interface diffusion,leading to a reduction in the TC but an enhancement in the tensile strength of the composites.The compaction pressure comprehensively affected the thermal properties of the composites.The 50wt.%Cu/Invar composite sintered at 700℃ and 60 MPa had the highest TC(90.7 W/(m·K)),which was significantly higher than the TCs obtained for most of the previously reported Cu/Invar composites.

Interfacial microstructure and mechanical behavior of Mg/Cu bimetal composites fabricated by compound casting process

Mg/Cu bimetal composites were prepared by compound casting method, and the microstructure evolution, phase constitution and bonding strength at the interface were investigated.It is found that a good metallurgical bonding can be achieved at the interface of Mg and Cu,which consists of two sub-layers,i.e.,layer I with 30μm on the copper side composed of Mg2Cu matrix phase, on which a small amount of dendritic MgCu2 phase was randomly distributed;layerⅡ with 140μm on the magnesium side made up of the lamellar nano-eutectic network Mg2Cu+(Mg) and a small amount of detached Mg2Cu phase. The average interfacial shear strength of the bimetal composite is measured to be 13 MPa.This study provides a new fabrication process for the application of Mg/Cu bimetal composites as the hydrogen storage materials.

Anisotropic and asymmetric deformation mechanisms of nanolaminated graphene/Cu composites

We conducted molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of tension and compression along the <112> direction and MD simulations of compression along the <110> and <111> directions on nanolaminated graphene/Cu (NGCu) composites to investigate the effects of the incorporated graphene and the deformation mechanisms related to the loading direction. The deformation behavior and the defect structures were found to be strongly dependent on the loading conditions. An asymmetric tension-compression deformation behavior was thus found in graphene/Cu nanolaminates under the <112> loading, which was dominated by stacking faults and deformation twins formed by dislocation slide under tension and compression, respectively. High density and ordered nanotwins were formed at the graphene/Cu interfaces. Two different formation mechanisms of the twins were found under the <112> compression, and the nucleated twins were easy to be thickened with the assistance of the graphene wrinkles. Multiple twins were formed under the <110> compression by the dislocation cross-slip. This study provides a way to introduce graphene reinforcement and twin boundary to Cu matrix composites and design nanotwinned graphene/Cu composites with excellent mechanical performance.

Microstructure and thermal and electric conductivities of high dense Mo/Cu composites

For electronic packaging applications, Mo/Cu composites with volume fractions of 55%, 60% and 67% Mo were fabricated by the patented squeeze-casting technology. The microstructures and thermal and electric conduction properties of the Mo/Cu composites were investigated. The results show that Mo particles are homogeneous and uniform, and the Mo-Cu interfaces are clean and free from interfacial reaction products and amorphous layers; the densifications of the Mo/Cu composites are higher than 99%. The thermal conductivities of Mo/Cu composites range from 220 to 270W/(m·℃) and decrease with an increase in volume fraction of Mo content. The thermal conductivities agree well with the predicted values of theoretical models. The electric conductivities of Mo/Cu composites are in the range of 2228MS/m and decrease with the increase of Mo content. The achievement of higher thermal and electric conduction is attributed to the full densities and high purity Mo/Cu composites, which are attained through the cost-effective squeeze-casting technology processes.

Wear Behavior of Cu Matrix Composites Reinforced with Mixture of Carbon and Carbon Nanotubes

In order to improve wear resistance and decrease the cost, carbon and carbon nanotubes reinforced copper matrix composites were fabricated by the power metallurgy method. The effects of carbon （carbon and carbon nanotubes） volume fraction and applied load on the friction coefficient and wear rate under dry sliding of the composites were investigated at room temperature. By scanning electron microscopy （SEM）, the worn surfaces and debris were observed, and wear mechanism was also analyzed and discussed. The experimental wear process consists of the run-in, steady wear and severe wear process with the increasing of sliding distance. Both the friction coefficient and wear rate of the composites first decrease and then increase with the increasing of carbon volume fraction. The minimum friction coefficient and wear rate are obtained when carbon is 4.0vo1%. The wear mechanisms of the composites change from the adhesive wear and delamination wear to abrasive wear with the increasing of carbon volume fraction.

In situ TiB2/Cu composites fabricated by spray deposition using solid-liquid and liquid-liquid reactions

In situ TiB2/Cu composites were fabricated by both solid-liquid(S-L)and liquid-liquid(L-L)reactive spray deposition in combination with cold rolling and annealing.The microstructure and properties of the fabricated TiB2/Cu composites were investigated.The results show that the reactive mode and rolling treatment are the main factors affecting the microstructure and properties of the TiB2/Cu composite.The in situ reaction in the L-L reaction can be carried out more completely.By controlling the rolling and annealing process,the relative density and the properties of the as-deposited composites are optimized.The comprehensive performance of the deformed TiB2/Cu composite prepared by L-L reactive spray deposition(401 MPa and 83.5%IACS)is better than that by S-L reactive spray deposition(520 MPa and 20.2%IACS).