Condura®.extra - Zirconia-toughened DCB-Al2O3 Substrates

For higher mechanical performance Condura®.extra is the material of choice. ZTA DCBs offers an even higher bending strength whereas thermal conductivity is comparable to Al2O3 DCBs.

DCB - Direct Copper Bonding

Power electronic modules use a ceramic substrate such as Al2O3 or ZTA (Zirconia Toughened Alumina) serving as an insulating layer, and copper connections to ensure the electrical conductivity at high temperatures.

For improved mechanical robustness, to achieve higher reliability, Condura®.extra (Zirconia-toughened DCB-Al2O3 substrates) is the material of choice. Condura®.extra is based of aluminum oxide material in which up to 30 % of ZrO2 are deposited in the ceramic matrix. It’s bending strength is higher than 500 MPa while aluminum oxide ceramics has about 400 MPa.

Heraeus as experts of long standing offers you support in the development stages, and in doing so, help to save you both time and money.

Condura®.extra substrates have an excellent performance/cost efficiency ratio.

Advantages of Condura®.extra at a glance:

  • Low ink rate and high level of quality consistency
  • Low contamination with metal or ceramic particles
  • Fast delivery of new DCB layouts for standard material combinations – five days following clarification of drawing and receipt of order within Europe, outside of Europe 15 days

Your advantages in working with Heraeus:

  • Exactly the right solution for your application, adapted to your needs
  • Quicker time to market due to unique expertise
  • Capability to test all adaptations in our in-house application center
  • High innovation capabilities

Power electronics in industrial use:

Our Condura®.extra substrates are recommended for power electronic modules (e.g. current inverters) using MOSFETs or IGBT semiconductor elements and diodes for widespread application fields in the industrial sector: electric motor drives, e.g. in tooling machines, cranes, textile-processing equipment, automation equipment, etc.

  • Pumps
  • Welding machines
  • Electrical industrial vehicles (e.g. power drives for forklifts)
  • Induction heating
  • Industrial drives (e.g. escalators, conveyor belts, elevators, robots, and servo drives)
  • Uninterruptable power supply to. data centers, hospitals, etc.
  • Energy technology (e.g. photovoltaics, wind turbines, and energy distribution)
  • White goods (e.g. air conditioners, washing machines, refrigerators, and warm water pumps)

Automotive and traction:

As high-performance circuit carriers for power electronic applications:

  • In such groups as power steering, start-stop systems, air conditioning compressors, water pumps, oil pumps, brakes, etc.
  • Converters for hybrid or electrical power train
  • Battery chargers
  • Inductive charging systems
  • DC-DC converters
  • Rail vehicles such as locomotives, subway trains, trams and cable cars, etc.

Communications:

  • Uninterruptable power supply (UPS) to telecommunication centers (e.g. RF amplification systems)

Further markets:

There are many examples of further markets in which DCBs are already being applied, such as medical technology (MRT, CRT), aerospace, radar systems, heavy building machinery, and looking towards the future, increasingly in agricultural vehicles and aircraft.

Combinations of materials:

We offer you the following standard material combinations:

  • Cu / Al2O3 / Cu: 0.3 / 0.32 / 0.3 mm

Other combinations are available upon request:

  • Zirconia-toughened DCB-Al2O3: 0.32 mm
  • Alumina ceramic Al2O3 (96%) thicknesses: 0.25 mm / 0.32 mm / 0.38 mm / 0.63 mm
  • Copper-OFE thicknesses: 0.2 mm / 0.25 mm / 0.3 mm / 0.4 mm
  • Single unit or master card size 7 ″ x 5 ″ (usable area)
  • Surface finish: bare Cu, Ni, Ni/Au (others planned)

Surface properties:

We can meet your request for an optimization of the surfaces or process parameters (either in a standard form or in a form developed jointly with you) for soldering, sintering, wire or ribbon bonding.

Technical data for surface coating:

Coating process Thickness of the coating [μm]
Electroless Ni 3 - 7 (8 % ±2 % P)
Immersion Au (ENIG, Au Class 1) 0.01 - 0.05
Immersion Au (ENIG, Au Class 2) 0.03 - 0.13