Thermal and structural characteristics of a eutectic Au-Ge alloy

The Au-Ge alloy is useful for bonding applications in microelectronic and optoelectronic packages. Also, recent investigations show that Au-Ge system could present a lead-free solder candidate. The results of characterization of the eutectic alloy from binary Au-Ge system are presented in this paper. Experimental research was done using thermal analysis (differential thermal analysis, DTA) and structural investigation by light optic microscopy (LOM) and scanning electron microscopy with EDS (SEM-EDS). The eutectic temperature of 359 degrees C was detected using thermal analysis, while eutectic structure was confirmed using microstructural analysis. Obtained results were compared with recent literature references and good mutual agreement was noticed.