Solder joint

Abstract

A solder joint, for bonding an electrode of a circuit board to an electrode of an electronic component, that includes: an Sn—Bi-based solder deposited on the electrode of the circuit board; and a solder alloy deposited on the electrode of the electronic component. The Sn—Bi-based solder alloy has a lower melting point than the solder alloy deposited on the electrode of the electronic component. Fine Bi phases in the solder joint each have an area of less than or equal to 0.5 μm.sup.2. Coarse Bi phases in the solder joint each have an area of greater than 0.5 μm.sup.2 and less than or equal to 5 μm.sup.2. A proportion of the fine Bi phases among the fine Bi phases and the coarse Bi phases is greater than or equal to 60%.

Claims

1. A solder joint for bonding an electrode of a circuit board to an electrode of an electronic component, the solder joint comprising: an Sn—Bi-based solder deposited on the electrode of the circuit board; and a solder alloy deposited on the electrode of the electronic component, wherein the Sn—Bi-based solder alloy has a lower melting point than the solder alloy deposited on the electrode of the electronic component, fine Bi phases in the solder joint each have an area of less than or equal to 0.5 μm.sup.2, coarse Bi phases in the solder joint each have an area of greater than 0.5 μm.sup.2 and less than or equal to 5 μm.sup.2, and a proportion of the fine Bi phases among the fine Bi phases and the coarse Bi phases is greater than or equal to 60%.

2. The solder joint according to claim 1, wherein the Sn—Bi-based solder alloy is at least one of an Sn—Bi solder alloy, an Sn—Bi—Cu solder alloy, an Sn—Bi—Ni solder alloy, an Sn—Bi—Cu—Ni solder alloy, an Sn—Bi—Ag solder alloy, or an Sn—Bi—Sb solder alloy.

3. The solder joint according to claim 1, wherein a Bi content in the Sn—Bi-based solder alloy is 30 to 80 mass %.

4. The solder joint according to claim 1, wherein the solder alloy deposited on the electrode of the electronic component is at least one of an Sn—Cu solder alloy, an Sn—Ag solder alloy, an Sn—Ag—Cu solder alloy, an Sn—Ag—Cu—Ni solder alloy, an Sn—Ag—Cu—Sb solder alloy, or an Sn—Ag—Cu—Ni—Sb solder alloy.

5. The solder joint according to claim 1, wherein a temperature difference between a melting point of the Sn—Bi-based solder alloy and a melting point of a solder alloy deposited on the electrode of the electronic component is greater than or equal to 30° C.

6. The solder joint according to claim 1, wherein the Sn—Bi-based solder alloy contains 58 mass % of Bi and a balance of Sn.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) FIG. 1 is a graph showing the relationship between the Bi content in the solder joint and the proportion of the number of Bi phases each having an area of 0.5 μm.sup.2 or less in the number of Bi phases each having an area of 5 μm.sup.2 or less in the case where the temperature profile is changed after heating.

(2) FIGS. 2A to 2F shows SEM photographs of the breakage surfaces of the respective solder joints obtained by changing the alloy composition of the solder alloy formed on the electrode of the circuit board and the temperature profile at the time of reflow.

(3) Specifically, FIG. 2A is an SEM photograph of the breakage surface of the solder joint formed under the conditions of Comparative Example 1.

(4) FIG. 2B is an SEM photograph of the breakage surface of the solder joint formed under the conditions of Example 1 of one or more embodiments of the present invention.

(5) FIG. 2C is an SEM photograph of the breakage surface of the solder joint formed under the conditions of Comparative Example 2.

(6) FIG. 2D is an SEM photograph of the breakage surface of the solder joint formed under the conditions of Example 2 of one or more embodiments of the present invention.

(7) FIG. 2E is an SEM photograph of the breakage surface of the solder joint formed under the conditions of Comparative Example 3.

(8) FIG. 2F is an SEM photograph of the solder joint formed under the conditions of Example 3 of one or more embodiments of the present invention.

(9) FIG. 3 shows a flowchart according to one or more embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(10) The present invention is described in detail below with reference to the following embodiments, which are mere examples, and the present invention is not necessarily limited thereby. In the specification below, “%” as to solder alloy composition indicates “mass %” unless otherwise specifically indicated.

(11) 1. Basic Structure of Solder Joint

(12) The solder bonding method according to one or more embodiments of the present invention is for bonding an electrode of a circuit board and an electrode of an electronic component by forming a solder joint.

(13) The solder joint formed by the solder bonding method of one or more embodiments has a bonding structure of bonding an electrode of a circuit board and an electrode of an electronic component. The circuit board to be used in one or more embodiments is a so-called printed circuit board, and a paste has been applied to the electrode of the circuit board. Bumps using solder bolls are formed on the electrode of the electronic component. The solder joint formed by the solder bonding method of one or more embodiments is formed by bonding the paste applied to the electrode of the circuit board and the solder bumps formed on the electrode of the electronic component when the electronic component is mounted on the circuit board.

(14) The circuit board used in one or more embodiments is a conventional printed circuit board, and for example, a paper phenol circuit board or a glass-epoxy circuit board can be used. A Cu electrode is mainly used as the electrode. The electrode may be Ni-plated.

(15) Next, each step will be described in detail.

(16) 2. Step of Forming (i.e., Depositing), on the Electrode of the Circuit Board, an Sn—Bi-Based Solder Alloy Having a Lower Melting Point than a Solder Alloy Formed (i.e., Deposited) on the Electrode of the Electronic Component

(17) (1) Method for Forming Solder Alloy

(18) In the solder bonding method of one or more embodiments, first, a solder alloy is formed on each of an electrode of a circuit board and an electrode of an electronic component. A high-melting-point solder alloy that does not melt at a reflow temperature is formed on the electrode of the electronic component, and an Sn—Bi-based low-melting-point solder alloy that melts at a reflow temperature is formed on the electrode of the circuit board.

(19) Specifically, for example, a mask is placed on the electrode of the circuit board, and a paste on the mask is coated to the electrode of the circuit board through an opening of the mask while moving a squeegee. Alternatively, the paste may be applied to the electrode by a discharge method or pre-coating. The coating thickness is not particularly limited and may be 0.05 to 0.2 mm. The components of the paste other than a solder alloy powder may be those conventionally used and are not particularly limited. The flux used in the solder paste may be either a water-soluble flux or a water-insoluble flux. A rosin-based flux, which is a rosin-based water-insoluble flux, is generally used.

(20) On the electrode of the electronic component, bumps are formed by mounting solder balls having a diameter of 100 to 1000 μm depending on a diameter of the electrode.

(21) (2) Alloy Composition of Solder Alloy Formed on Electrode of Circuit Board

(22) An Sn—Bi-based solder alloy having a lower melting point than a solder alloy formed on the electrode of the electronic component is formed on the electrode of the circuit board to be used in one or more embodiments. Such low-melting-point solder alloy is necessary for low-temperature bonding to prevent thermal damage to the circuit board. Accordingly, the solder alloy used on the circuit board side of one or more embodiment may have a low melting point (liquidus temperature) of 150° C. or less. Such an Sn—Bi-based solder alloy can be at least one kind of Sn—Bi solder alloys, Sn—Bi—Cu solder alloys, Sn—Bi—Ni solder alloys, Sn—Bi—Cu—Ni solder alloys, Sn—Bi—Ag solder alloys, and an Sn—Bi—Sb solder alloys.

(23) When Cu or Ni is added to the Sn—Bi solder alloy, the Cu content may be 0.1% to 1.0%, and the Ni content may be 0.01% to 0.1%. These Sn—Bi—Cu solder alloy, Sn—Bi—Ni solder alloy, and Sn—Bi—Cu—Ni solder alloy can prevent the growth of intermetallic compound at the bonding interface of the solder joint, so that excellent connection reliability can be maintained even when heating is performed for a long period of time as in one or more embodiments. The solder alloy may further contain Ag or Sb in a range in which the melting point of the solder alloy becomes 150° C. or less.

(24) In addition, the Bi content may be 30% to 80% in alloy composition of each of these alloys. When the Bi content is in the above-described range, the melting point (solidus temperature) is constant at 138° C. Therefore, when an alloy having such Bi content is used for solder bumps on the circuit board, the solder alloy formed on the electrode of the circuit board starts melting when heated, and the bumps of the electronic component can form a solder joint while pressing the bumps of the circuit board by the self-weight of the electronic component. In addition, the Bi content may be 35% to 70% or 53% to 61% from the viewpoint of shifting the liquidus temperature to a low temperature to lower the heating temperature and further reducing the thermal damage to the electronic component and the circuit board.

(25) The Sn—Bi-based solder alloy is particularly preferably an alloy having 58% of Bi and the balance of Sn as eutectic composition. Since this alloy composition is eutectic composition, it becomes a liquid phase at a temperature of 138° C. or higher, and thus a solder joint can be easily formed at a low temperature.

(26) (3) Alloy Composition of Solder Alloy Formed on Electrode of Electronic Component

(27) The solder alloy formed on the electrode of the electronic component is preferably, for example, at least one kind of an Sn—Cu solder alloy, an Sn—Ag solder alloy, an Sn—Ag-Su solder alloy, an Sn—Ag—Cu—Ni solder alloy, an Sn—Ag—Cu—Sb solder alloy, and an Sn—Ag—Cu—Ni—Sb solder alloy.

(28) These solder alloys preferably have such melting points that they do not melt at the time of reflow and may have melting points (solidus temperatures) of 200° C. or more.

(29) (4) Temperature Difference in Melting Point Between Solder Alloys

(30) The temperature difference between the melting point (liquidus temperature) of the solder alloy formed on the electrode of the circuit board and the melting point (solidus temperature) of the solder alloy formed on the electrode of the electronic component may be 30° C. or more. When the temperature difference is 30° C. or more, the solder alloy formed on the electrode of the electronic component does not melt even considering the error in temperature control. The temperature difference in melting point is more preferably 40° C. or more, yet more preferably 50° C. or more. For example, the liquidus temperature and solidus temperature can be measured using DSC.

(31) 3. Step of mounting the electronic component on the circuit board such that the solder alloy formed on the electrode of the circuit board and the solder alloy formed on the electrode of the electronic component come into contact with each other.

(32) Next, the electronic component is mounted on the circuit board such that the electrode of the circuit board and the electrode of the electronic component come into contact with each other. The electronic component with bumps formed thereon is supplied by a feeder, and the electronic component is mounted on the circuit board by a component mounting apparatus. Examples of the system of the component mounting apparatus include a one-by-one system, an in-line system, and a multisystem.

(33) 4. Step of heating the circuit board to a peak temperature of heating of 150° C. to 180° C. with a holding time of the peak temperature of heating of more than 60 seconds and 150 seconds or less

(34) (1) Peak Temperature of Heating

(35) The circuit board on which the electronic component is mounted is introduced into a reflow furnace, and the circuit board is heated at a peak temperature of heating of 150° C. to 180° C. during reflow. This temperature range may be lower than the melting point of the solder alloy formed on the electrode of the electronic component. That is, this temperature range may be a temperature range in which the solder alloy formed on the electrode of the circuit board melts, and the solder alloy formed on the electrode of the electronic component does not melt. In this temperature range, thermal damage to the circuit board and the electronic component can be prevented. In addition, since the heating temperature is kept low, the influence of the difference in coefficient of thermal expansion among the circuit board, the electronic component, and the solder alloy is reduced, whereby stress concentration at the solder joint during rapid cooling can be prevented.

(36) If the peak temperature of heating is less than 150° C., the Bi phase is segregated, and a microstructure cannot be obtained. In addition, the melt diffusion is insufficient, and therefore, the bonding between the electrode and the solder alloy or the bonding between the high-melting-point solder alloy and the low-melting-point solder alloy may not be completed, resulting in breakage of the solder joint in some cases. On the other hand, if the peak temperature of heating exceeds 180° C., thermal damage to the electronic component and the circuit board may occur. Therefore, the peak temperature of heating is preferably 165° C. to 180° C.

(37) (2) Holding Time

(38) The holding time of the peak temperature of heating is more than 60 seconds and 150 seconds or less. Conventionally, the holding time is suppressed to at most about 40 seconds from the viewpoint of shortening the manufacturing time and reducing the costs. However, in one or more embodiments, in order to improve connection reliability of the solder joint, a sufficient melting time is ensured by heating for a long period of time, which has been avoided conventionally. Thus, the structure is uniformized, and the melt diffusion is sufficiently performed. In the solder bonding method of one or more embodiments, the peak temperature of heating is kept low as mentioned above. Thus, the growth of the intermetallic compound layer at the bonding interface can be prevented, and the crystal grain size of the solder alloy can be reduced even if the holding time is lengthened. As a result, excellent connection reliability can be obtained.

(39) If the holding time is 60 seconds or less, the Bi phase segregates at the time of solidification, and the melt diffusion is insufficient, so that the bonding is not completed. Therefore, if the cooling rate is high, the solder joint breaks due to the difference in coefficient of thermal expansion among the circuit board, the electronic component, and the solder alloy, as mentioned below. On the other hand, if the holding time exceeds 150 seconds, the manufacturing time becomes too long, which is not preferable. The holding time of the peak temperature of heating is more preferably 90 to 120 seconds from the viewpoint of reliably melting and diffusing and not reducing the productivity.

(40) In order to remove the solvent in the paste, preheating may be performed at a temperature in the range of 50° C. to 100° C. before introducing the circuit board into the reflow furnace.

(41) 5. Step of cooling the circuit board at a cooling rate after the heating of 3° C./sec or more to form a solder joint.

(42) The circuit board is cooled from the heating temperature to room temperature at a cooling rate after the heating in the range of 3° C./sec or more. Conventionally, cooling after reflow is performed by air-cooling, and this cooling is performed at a cooling rate of approximately 1° C./sec. This is to avoid stress concentration at the solder joint due to the difference in coefficient of thermal expansion among the circuit board, the electronic component, and the solder alloy. However, in one or more embodiments, by separately providing a cooling means in the reflow furnace to increase the cooling rate of the circuit board, growth of the intermetallic compound layer at the bonding interface is prevented, and at the same time the Bi phase in the Sn—Bi-based low-melting-point solder alloy becomes fine, and stress concentration at the bonding interface and the crystal interface is prevented, whereby excellent connection reliability can be ensured. In addition, since the heating temperature is lowered, residual stress due to the difference in thermal expansion of the circuit board is reduced, whereby excellent connection reliability of the solder joint can be maintained even when rapid cooling is performed after heating.

(43) When the cooling rate is less than 3° C./sec, it takes time to cool, so that the Bi phase becomes coarse as the intermetallic compound layer grows. On the other hand, the upper limit of the cooling rate is preferably 7° C./sec or less, more preferably 5° C./sec or less, yet more preferably 4° C./sec or less from the viewpoint of cooling equipment.

(44) The means for increasing the cooling rate is not particularly limited, and the circuit board may be cooled by cold air using a compressor or the like, or may be cooled by pressing a cooling medium against the circuit board. However, cooling using a compressor is preferable from the viewpoint of ensuring a stable cooling rate.

(45) In the solder bonding method according to one or more embodiments, bonding is performed at a lower temperature than that in the conventional method, whereby the damage to the circuit board and the electronic component can be prevented. Further, the damage to the heating element of the reflow furnace can also be prevented, whereby the costs can be reduced.

(46) 6. Solder Joint

(47) In observation of the cross section of the solder joint formed by the solder bonding method according to one or more embodiments, the proportion of the number of Bi phases each having an area of 0.5 μm.sup.2 or less in the number of Bi phases each having an area of 5 μm.sup.2 or less in any region on the electrode side of the circuit board may be 60% or more on average. In one or more embodiments, excellent connection reliability that has not been achieved conventionally can be achieved by focusing on the structure of the low-melting-point solder alloy and controlling the structure of the solder alloy by setting the heating conditions and the cooling conditions to predetermined ranges as mentioned above. In order to achieve this, it is necessary to focus on the area of the Bi phase, which is essential for the low-melting-point solder alloy. That is, if the number of fine Bi phases each having a small area is larger than the number of coarse Bi phases each having a large area in observation of the cross section of the solder joint, a large number of fine Bi phases are present, and therefore, the microstructure can be obtained.

(48) Therefore, in one or more embodiments in which the fine Bi phase is achieved, even when a large stress is applied, the stress is dispersed. Thus, even if a circuit board and an electronic component having coefficients of thermal expansion largely different from each other are used, the stress can be relieved to such an extent that the circuit board and the electronic component do not break.

(49) The solder joint capable of exhibiting such effect is required to have an alloy structure having a large number of Bi phases each having an area of 0.5 μm.sup.2 or less. In order to make the above effect more sufficiently exhibited, the proportion of the number of Bi phases each having an area of 0.5 μm.sup.2 or less in the number of Bi phases each having an area of 5 μm.sup.2 or less may be 60% or more on average or 65% or more on average.

(50) The solder joint according to one or more embodiments may have an intermetallic compound layer of 3 to 5 μm in the vicinity of the bonding interface with the electrode.

EXAMPLES

(51) 1. Production of Solder Joint

(52) Table 1 summarizes alloy composition of a solder alloy formed on a Cu electrode of a circuit board, heating conditions, and cooling conditions. The circuit board used in the present examples was an FR-4 glass-epoxy circuit board with an electrode diameter of 325 μm, a side length of 105 mm, and a plate thickness of 0.8 mm. On this circuit board, an electronic component (BGA) with a Cu electrode, having an electrode diameter of 450 μm and a side length of 20 mm, was mounted. The alloy composition of the solder alloy formed on the electrode of BGA (referred to as “Device” in Table 1) was SAC405 (Sn-4Ag-0.5 Cu (Ag: 4%, Cu: 0.5%, Sn: the balance), solidus temperature: 217° C.) as summarized in Table 1, and bumps were formed on the electrode using solder balls with a diameter of 290 μm. The alloy composition of the solder alloy formed on the electrode of the circuit board is as summarized in Table 1. In the alloy composition described in the column “Alloy Composition” in Table 1, the numerical value described right before the element represents the content (mass %), and the balance other than Bi, Cu, and Ni represents Sn. It was confirmed by DSC that the liquidus temperature of each solder alloy on the circuit board side was lower than the solidus temperature on the BGA side. The liquidus temperature of Sn-58Bi was 141° C., the liquidus temperature of Sn-35Bi-0.5Cu-0.03Ni was 184° C., and the liquidus temperature of Sn-70Bi-0.5Cu-0.03Ni was 180° C. The solidus temperature and the liquidus temperature were determined from the DSC curve obtained by increasing the temperature at 5° C./min in the atmosphere using a DSC (Model No. Q2000) manufactured by TA Instruments Japan, Inc.

(53) A solder paste containing solder alloy powder of this alloy composition was applied to the electrode of the circuit board to have a thickness of 100 μm. Then, the circuit board was heated and cooled under the conditions summarized in Table 1 to form a solder joint having a thickness of 200 μm. The heating temperature and the cooling rate were measured by attaching a thermocouple to the circuit board.

(54) As a method of cooling the solder alloy, in the examples and Comparative Examples 5 and 6, the surface of the circuit board after heating, opposite to the surface on which the BGA was mounted was rapidly cooled by pressing it against a cooling agent, and in Comparative Examples 1 to 4, the circuit board was cooled in the atmosphere. The cooling rate was determined by measuring the temperature and time until the circuit board was cooled to room temperature by bringing the thermocouple into contact with the circuit board.

(55) 2. Observation of Breakage Surface of Solder Joint

(56) An SEM photograph of the breakage surface of the formed solder joint was taken with a scanning electron microscope (JSM-5600LV manufactured by Nippon Electronics Co., Ltd.) at 1000× magnification with the observation mode as the BEI. Three regions of 128 μm×96 μm were arbitrarily selected from the region near the bonding interface of the solder joint, and the area of the Bi phase at each of three locations was determined. The area of the Bi phase was determined by assuming that, in the SEM photograph, a portion of 1 dot had 0.04 μm.sup.2, a portion of up to 2 dots was a noise, and a white portion of three dots having 0.12 μm.sup.2 or more was determined as the Bi phase. Among the determined areas of the Bi phases, the one having the area of 0.5 μm.sup.2 or less was determined as the fine Bi phase. The proportion of the number of Bi phases each having an area of 0.5 μm.sup.2 or less in the number of Bi phases each having an area of 5 μm.sup.2 or less in each region was measured, and each average was determined.

(57) 3. Connection Reliability Test

(58) A strain gauge was attached to the four corners of the BGA using the mounting circuit board on which the solder joint was formed as described in the item 1 above, and the bending test was repeatedly performed while monitoring the strain amount at all times. In order to evaluate the results of the bending test, the bonding impedance (Ω) between the BGA and the circuit board was measured, and the number of cycles at which the impedance increased by 10% or more from the initial value was measured.

(59) The number of bending cycles at a strain amount of 1000μ Strain of 100000 was set to the maximum number of bending cycles for the mounting circuit board on which the used electronic component (BGA) was mounted. If the maximum number of bending cycles was achieved, it was determined that there was no problem even if the electronic component was used for the products, so the solder joint was evaluated as “∘”. If the number of bending cycles was less than 100000, the solder joint was evaluated as “×”. The bending test was conducted based on “IPC/JEDEC-9707 Spherical Bend Test Method for board level Interconnects”.

(60) The results of the measurements are shown in Table 1.

(61) TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 1 Alloy Composition Peak Degree of fine geometry Bending Device Paste Temp. Keep Cooling Bump 1 Bump 2 Bump 3 Ave. test result Ex. 1 SAC405 Sn—35Bi—0.5Cu—0.03Ni 180 120 4 64.5 61.0 59.7 62 ∘ Ex. 2 SAC405 Sn—58Bi 180 120 4 65.4 58.1 55.3 60 ∘ Ex. 3 SAC405 Sn—70Bi—0.5Cu—0.03Ni 180 120 4 65.8 58.4 57.9 61 ∘ Ex. 4 SAC405 Sn—58Bi 165 120 4 62.7 64.8 61.4 63 ∘ Ex. 5 SAC405 Sn—58Bi 150 120 4 64.6 66.4 60.9 64 ∘ Ex. 6 SAC405 Sn—58Bi 180 120 3 60.5 67.8 67.6 65 ∘ Ex. 7 SAC405 Sn—58Bi 180 120 7 73.8 73.5 71.5 73 ∘ Ex. 8 SAC405 Sn—58Bi 180 150 4 72.3 73.3 66.7 71 ∘ Comp. Ex. 1 SAC405 Sn—35Bi—0.5Cu—0.03Ni 180 30 1 52.7 50.1 45.8 50 x Comp. Ex. 2 SAC405 Sn—58Bi 180 30 1 49.2 46.6 34.2 43 x Comp. Ex. 3 SAC405 Sn—70Bi—0.5Cu—0.03Ni 180 30 1 53.7 50.2 43.6 49 x Comp. Ex. 4 SAC405 Sn—58Bi 180 120 1 58.1 46.3 56.9 54 x Comp. Ex. 5 SAC405 Sn—58Bi 180 30 4 47.4 43.6 47.0 46 x Comp. Ex. 6 SAC405 Sn—58Bi 180 60 4 58.0 60.2 59.7 59 x

(62) As is evident from Table 1, the solder joints formed by the reflow profiles of the examples showed the results of the proportion of the number of Bi phases each having an area of 0.5 μm.sup.2 or less in the number of Bi phases each having an area of 5 μm.sup.2 or less of 60% or more on average. This demonstrates that sufficiently fine Bi phases were obtained by rapid cooling after heating. The results of the repeated bending test mentioned in the item 3 above showed that 100000 cycles, which is the maximum number of bending cycles were achieved.

(63) In contrast, the solder joints formed under the conditions of the comparative examples only showed the results of the proportion of the number of Bi phases each having an area of 0.5 μm.sup.2 or less in the number of Bi phases each having an area of 5 μm.sup.2 or less of below 60% on average. In the connection reliability test mentioned in the item 3 above, none of the compositions achieved 100000 cycles because the impedance increased by 10% or more at the time when 100000 cycles were not achieved.

(64) In Comparative Examples 1 to 4, the number of bending cycles was small because the cooling rate was slow, and sufficiently fine Bi phase could not be obtained. In Comparative Examples 5 and 6, the Bi phase was segregated to have low degree of fine geometry because the holding time of heating was short, and the number of bending cycles was small.

(65) Some of the results of Table 1 are extracted and shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 1 is a graph showing the relationship between the Bi content in the solder joint and the proportion of the number of Bi phases each having an area of 0.5 μm.sup.2 or less in the number of Bi phases each having an area of 5 μm.sup.2 or less in the case where the temperature profile is changed after heating. In FIG. 1, the vertical axis indicates the proportion of the number of Bi phases each having an area of 0.5 μm.sup.2 or less in the number of Bi phases each having an area of 5 μm.sup.2 or less, and the horizontal axis indicates the Bi content in the solder alloy formed on the electrode of the circuit board. As the specific alloy composition, the “35Bi” indicates Sn-35Bi-0.5Cu-0.03Ni (the composition used in Example 1 and Comparative Example 1), the “58Bi” indicates Sn-58Bi (the composition used in Example 2 and Comparative Example 2), and the “70Bi” indicates Sn-70Bi-0.5Cu-0.03Ni (the composition used in Example 3 and Comparative Example 3). The “sight1”, the “sight2”, and the “sight3” represent the respective three regions selected from the breakage surface of the solder joint, and the “Ave.” represents the average of values in each alloy composition. As shown in FIG. 1, by optimizing the reflow profile, the proportion of the average of the number of Bi phases each having an area of 0.5 μm.sup.2 or less in the average of the number of Bi phases each having an area of 5 μm.sup.2 or less became high in the present examples, regardless of the solder alloy composition.

(66) Photographs of the breakage surfaces of the solder joints formed in the above-described manner are shown. FIGS. 2A to 2F shows SEM photographs of the breakage surfaces of the respective solder joints obtained by changing the alloy composition of the solder alloy formed on the electrode of the circuit board and the temperature profile at the time of reflow. FIG. 2A is an SEM photograph of the breakage surface of the solder joint formed under the conditions of Comparative Example 1. FIG. 2B is an SEM photograph of the breakage surface of the solder joint formed under the conditions of Example 1. FIG. 2C is an SEM photograph of the breakage surface of the solder joint formed under the conditions of Comparative Example 2. FIG. 2D is an SEM photograph of the breakage surface of the solder joint formed under the conditions of Example 2. FIG. 2E is an SEM photograph of the breakage surface of the solder joint formed under the conditions of Comparative Example 3. FIG. 2F is an SEM photograph of the solder joint formed under the conditions of Example 3.

(67) In FIGS. 2A to 2F, the white part is the Bi phase. As shown in FIGS. 2B, 2D and 2F, in Examples 1 to 3 in which the reflow profiles were optimized, the fine Bi phases could be observed. In contrast, as shown in FIGS. 2A, 2C and 2E, in Comparative Examples 1 to 3, each of Bi phases had a large area and was coarse as a whole compared with Examples 1 to 3. The same results were obtained in other examples and comparative examples. In Examples 1 to 3, it is considered that the results exceeding 100000 cycles in the repeated bending test were obtained by making the structure of the solder alloy constituting the solder joint fine and relaxing the stress.

(68) FIG. 3 shows a flowchart according to one or more embodiments. Specifically, the flowchart depicts the method for forming a solder joint between an electrode of a circuit board and an electrode of an electronic component discussed above. The scope of the invention should not be considered limited to the specific arrangement of steps shown in FIG. 3.

(69) In STEP 305, as discussed above, a Sn—Bi based solder alloy is deposited on an electrode of a circuit board and a solder alloy is deposited on an electrode of an electronic component. In one or more embodiments, the melting point of the Sn—Bi-based solder alloy is lower than the melting point of the solder alloy deposited on the electrode of the electronic component.

(70) In STEP 310, as discussed above, the electronic component is mounted onto the circuit board in order for the Sn—Bi-based solder alloy to contact the solder alloy deposited on the electronic component.

(71) In STEP 315, as discussed above, the circuit board is heated to a peak temperature of heating and the peak temperature of heating is held at a predetermined holding time.

(72) In STEP 320, as discussed above, the circuit board is cooled, after the heating, to a predetermined cooling rate in order to form the solder joint between the electrode of the circuit board and the electrode of the electronic component.

(73) As described above, by forming the solder joint by the solder bonding method according to one or more embodiments, thermal damage to the circuit board and the electronic component can be reduced, and excellent connection reliability can be exhibited.

(74) Although the disclosure has been described with respect to only a limited number of embodiments, those skilled in the art, having benefit of this disclosure, will appreciate that various other embodiments may be devised without departing from the scope of the present invention. Accordingly, the scope of the invention should be limited only by the attached claims.