Thermal expansion and mechanical properties of high reinforcement content SiCp/Cu composites fabricated by squeeze casting technology

High reinforcement content SiCp/Cu composites (ϕp=50%, 55% and 60%) for electronic packaging applications were fabricated by patent cost-effective squeeze-casting technology. The composites appear to be free of pores, and the SiC particles are distribute uniformly in the composites. The mean linear coefficients of thermal expansion (CTEs, 20–100 °C) of as-cast SiCp/Cu composites range from 8.8×10−6 °C−1 to 9.9×10−6 °C−1 and decrease with the increase of SiC content. The experimental CTEs of as-cast SiCp/Cu composites agree well with the predicted values based on Kerner model. The CTEs of composites reduce after annealing treatment due to the fact that the internal stress of the composite is released. The Brinell hardness increases from 272.3 to 313.2, and the modulus increases from 186 GPa to 210 GPa for the corresponding composites. The bending strength is larger than 374 MPa, but no obvious trend between bending strength and SiCp content is observed.