Elements of Indium by Indium Corporation: Cold Welding

At Indium Corporation, we believe that materials science changes the world. In recognition of the notable material behind our name, we will release monthly installments of the Elements of Indium Series—an educational program to raise awareness of the unique applications, abundance, and interesting properties of the 49th element.

The term “welding” often conjures up an image of an arc welder’s helmet and sparks dancing across the metal’s surface. Although heat is often associated with welding, it is not always necessary. Cold welding is the process of fusing two metals together without using heat.

Cold welding is done by applying enough pressure to break the oxide surface which leads to adhesion. This means an instant attachment can be created in just fractions of a second with bare minimum pressure and will last indefinitely. Because of its unique properties, indium can cold weld to itself effortlessly.

Cold welding indium to indium produces a clean, efficient bond that doesn’t change the properties of either piece of metal. When using techniques such asultrasonic and laser welding, the properties can sometimes change. Higher purity, oxide-free indium wires can create a strong bond that will remain solid up to 157°C. An indium, cold-welded bond can also endure cryogenic temperatures while maintaining excellent thermal and electrical properties.

Indium Corporation is a global leader for indium metal and associated technologies.For more information on indium metal, visit www.indium.com/indium49.

Indium Corporation is a premier materials refiner, smelter, manufacturer, and supplier to the global electronics, semiconductor, thin-film, and thermal management markets. Products include solders and fluxes; brazes; thermal interface materials; sputtering targets; indium, gallium, germanium, and tin metals and inorganic compounds; and NanoFoil^®. Founded in 1934, the company has global technical support and factories located in China, Germany, India, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, the United Kingdom, and the U.S.

For more information about Indium Corporation, visit www.indium.com or emailjhuang@indium.com. You can also follow our experts, From One Engineer To Another^® (#FOETA), at www.linkedin.com/company/indium-corporation/ or @IndiumCorp.