Abstract
Metal whiskers often grow across leads of electric equipment causing short circuits and raising significant reliability issues. Their nature remains a mystery after several decades of research. It was observed that metal whiskers exhibit large amplitude movements under gentle air flow or, according to some testimonies, without obvious stimuli. Understanding the physics behind that movements would give additional insights into the nature of metal whiskers. Here, we quantitatively analyze possible mechanisms of the observed movements: (1) minute air currents; (2) Brownian motion due to random bombardments with the air molecules; (3) mechanically caused movements, such as (a) transmitted external vibrations, and (b) torque exerted due to material propagation along curved whiskers (the garden hose instability); (4) time dependent electric fields due to diffusion of ions; and (5) non-equilibrium electric fields making it possible for some whiskers to move. For all these mechanisms, we provide numerical estimates. Our conclusion is that the observed movements are likely due to the air currents or electric recharging caused by external light or similar factors.
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