Tin Whiskers

Tin whiskers have been responsible for the loss of billions of dollars worth of satellites, missiles, and other equipment. Tin whiskers develop under typical operating conditions on a product using lead-free pure tin coatings. Driven by the accelerating movement to lead-free products, tin whiskers pose major safety, reliability, and potential liability threats. Existing approaches are not sufficient to control tin whiskering in high-reliability systems. Unless decisive action is taken, serious consequences are inevitable.