Ductility and Plating Baths
What are some guidelines for improving ductility of plated deposits of copper and nickel?
Q. Can you give me some simple guidelines for improving the ductility of plated deposits, particularly copper and nickel? –S.M.
A. Yes I can! Larger grain size of the deposited metal will usually give you greater ductility. How do we get larger grain size? Warmer plating solutions, lower current densities and higher metal concentrations all help to get larger grains. Also, maintaining a clean plating bath will limit the co-deposition of impurities that cause a decline in ductility.
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