Indium Corporation Experts to Present on Array of Solder and Thermal Management Solutions at APEX EXPO 2026

Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

As a leading materials provider for the advanced electronic packaging market, Indium Corporation® experts will share their technical insight and knowledge on a variety of industry-related topics at APEX EXPO 2026, March 17-19, in Anaheim, California.

Tuesday, March 17

11:30 a.m. – Formic Acid Convection Reflow Soldering for Leaded and Lead-Free Technologies presented by Matthew Schneider, Associate Scientist.

• This session presents research on formic acid (FA) reflow technology, an innovative soldering method that eliminates flux residue in power electronics assemblies. It examines fluxless solder pastes formulated with Sn63Pb37 and SAC305 powders, and their impact on wettability, printability, voiding performance, and gaseous FA penetration beneath bottom-terminated components. The results demonstrate viability for power electronics and advanced SMT assembly processes.

3:30 p.m. – Liquid Metals as a Thermal Interface Material presented by Miloš Lazić, Senior Product Specialist for Thermal Interface Materials (Sunny Agarwal, Senior Applications and Process Engineer [ITW EAE], co-author).

• This presentation compares performance data on four gallium-based liquid metal thermal interface materials. Qualities evaluated include thermal conductivity, thermal resistance, power cycling durability, and how substrate wetting characteristics influence interfacial resistance. The session demonstrates how liquid metals deliver superior heat transfer versus conventional thermal greases and offer practical guidance for high-volume manufacturing applications.

Wednesday, March 18

3:30 p.m. – Compressible Metal Thermal Interface Material (TIM) for Power Electronic Module to Heat-Sink Attach presented by Emin Skiljan, Applications Engineering Intern.

• This session investigates the efficacy of patterned indium metal as a compressible thermal interface material for power module assemblies in automotive, EV, photovoltaic, and industrial applications. It compares lab-setting compression versus real-world assembly performance, examining thermal resistance, effective conductivity, bondline thickness, and pressure distribution. Results demonstrate how uniform pressure and mechanical fixturing optimize thermal performance in high-power inverter systems.

4:00 p.m. – Advancements in Jettable and Screen-Printable Solder Pastes: Cleaning Compatibility for Complex Semiconductor and Electronic Assemblies presented by Stephen Pavlik, Technical Support Engineer (Matthew Gruber, Technical Support Engineer; and Kalyan Nukala, Application Engineer [Zestron], co-authors).

• This presentation examines cleaning process compatibility for novel jettable and screen-printable no-clean solder pastes used in miniaturized electronic assemblies. It evaluates various cleaning chemistries on pastes with different metal loads and powder types, presenting visual inspection results, ion chromatography data, and SIR testing. Research results identify how optimal cleaning setups for jettable pastes can achieve thinner bondlines in intricate assembly applications.

5:00 p.m. – A Review on a Bi-Free In-Containing Lower Temperature Solder presented by Hongwen Zhang, Ph.D., Senior R&D Manager, Alloy Group, Principal Metallurgist.

• This session assesses how using DFLT, a bismuth-free, indium-containing low-temperature solder paste, helps address severe warpage challenges. With its dual-powder design and 189°C solidus temperature, DFLT demonstrates drop shock resistance exceeding BiSnAg by two orders of magnitude, excellent electromigration performance, and reliability surpassing SAC305. Lower reflow temperatures (210°C) mitigate warpage-induced defects in large-format BGAs used in high-performance computing modules.

5:00 p.m. – Poster Presentation, Voiding Control Using SAC-In Preform in Paste for Quad Flat-Pack No-Lead Assembly by Alexander Russell, Product Specialist; and Mohammed Genanu, Technical Support Engineer.

• This poster presentation introduces a dual-material approach to low-temperature soldering: reduced-temperature alloy paste combined with SAC-Indium-enriched preforms. Evaluating solder joint performance for QFN packages under constrained assembly conditions demonstrates that this methodology achieves SAC305-level reliability while addressing uneven heating challenges in densely populated assemblies through reduced reflow temperatures.

Thursday, March 19

9:30 a.m. – Smarter Training for Smarter Machines: Empowering Teams That Keep Equipment Running moderated by Adam Murling, Technical Services Manager - USA.

• In this panel session, industry experts explore practical strategies for overcoming key training challenges: scaling content globally, adapting to rapid technological changes, closing skills gaps, and securing cross-regional buy-in.

To learn more about Indium Corporation’s next-generation solder technologies, meet with our experts at APEX EXPO 2026, Exhibit Hall C-D, booth #1038.