(Invited) Nanocrystalline Ni-W: The Science, Commercialization and Scaling of an Electrodeposited Coating

Abstract

Nanocrystalline Ni-W alloy coatings deposited using pulse-reverse electrodeposition were studied as a model nanocrystalline material 20 years ago at MIT, and commercialized by Xtalic Corporation in electronic applications beginning in 2008. Under the trade name Xtronic, these coatings provide exceptional wear resistance and barrier protection due to their extremely fine ~10 nm grain size, and have enabled significant reconfigurations of the electronic connector metallization stack in many applications from enterprise to consumer electronics. This talk will review the basic science of the Ni-W alloy system and its ability to deliver these unique properties by virtue of its nanostructure, as well as some of the electrochemical features of the process that enabled its scaling from the laboratory to hundreds of billions of individual metallized contacts. As a case study in the growth of an electrochemical nanotechnology, the talk will also review elements of technology transfer between MIT and Xtalic Corporation that helped facilitate Xtronic’s commercial emergence, including intellectual property management and ongoing basic research.