Effects of Au coating on thermal stresses in stainless-to-Kovar packages

A finite-element method (FEM) analysis has been carried out on the thermally-induced stresses generated when stainless steel covers are laser-welded to Au-coated Kovar TO headers during the packaging of semiconductor lasers. In particular, the effect of varying the Au coating thickness of these stresses was investigated. Maximum stresses were found to be reduced as the Au thickness increased. This effect is attributed to the reduction in thermal gradient in the weld region provided by the increased thermal conduction of thicker Au. The result suggests that adequate Au coating thickness is important for ensuring good reliability of opto-electronic packages having laser-welded caps. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.