AlN is an important inorganic material composed of aluminum and nitrogen. It has a honeycomb crystal structure. It has good thermal conductivity and a small thermal expansion coefficient and is a good heat-resistant material. It has strong resistance to melting and is an ideal crucible material for melting and casting pure iron, aluminum or aluminum alloys. Aluminum nitride is also an electrical insulator with good dielectric properties and is used as an electrical component. The aluminum nitride coating on the surface of gallium arsenide can protect it from ion injection. Aluminum nitride is also a catalyst for the transformation of hexagonal boron nitride to cubic boron nitride.
Advantages of AlN
- High thermal conductivity (about 320W/m·K), close to BeO and SiC, more than 5 times that of Al2O3;
- Thermal expansion coefficient (4.5×10-6℃) is similar to Si (3.5~4×10-6℃) and GaAs (6×10-6℃);
- Excellent electrical properties (dielectric constant, dielectric loss, volume resistivity, dielectric strength);
- Good mechanical properties, and higher flexural strength than Al2O3 and BeO ceramics, can be sintered at normal pressure;
- Good optical transmission characteristics;
- Non-toxic, no toxic substances;
It is a promising high-power integrated circuit substrate and packaging material.
Main Applications of AlN Powder
- High thermal conductivity filler for thermal paste and thermal grease.
- High thermal conductivity filler for thermal adhesive, thermal silicone sheet, epoxy resin thermal potting glue.
- High thermal conductivity filler for thermal engineering plastics.
- High thermal conductivity filler for packaging materials, high-temperature lubricants, adhesives, heat-dissipation paints, and heat-dissipation inks.
- High thermal conductivity filler for thermal interface materials (TIM).
- Used as insulating and thermally conductive fillers for manufacturing high thermal conductivity integrated circuit substrates (MCPCB, FCCL).
- Used to make crucibles, evaporation boats, ceramic tools, and cutters for melting metals.
- Used for microwave dielectric materials.
- Used to make high thermal conductivity aluminum nitride ceramic substrates,
and various ceramic products.
- Used to synthesize high-quality LED phosphors.
Preparation Method and Difficulties of Aluminum Nitride Powder
- In nitrogen, ultrafine Al2O3 powder and high-purity carbon powder balls are mixed, and AlN powder is generated with nitrogen at a certain temperature (1400-1800℃). The main difficulty of this method is that it is difficult to mix the raw materials of aluminum oxide and carbon evenly, the synthesis time is long, and the excess carbon needs to be treated, the process is complicated, and the preparation cost is high.
- The aluminum powder is heated in nitrogen, and at high temperature (800-1200℃), the aluminum powder reacts directly with nitrogen to produce aluminum nitride powder. The disadvantages of this method are obvious. In the early stage of the reaction, a nitride film will gradually form on the surface of the aluminum powder, making it difficult for nitrogen to react further.
- (CVD) method is effective for preparing ultrafine, high-purity, uniformly distributed nitride powder. The volatile compound of aluminum (aluminum halide or alkyl aluminum) is brought into the reaction chamber by N2 to react with NH3, and AlN grains are deposited from the gas phase. This process has high requirements on equipment and low production efficiency. Using alkyl aluminum as raw material will lead to high costs while using inorganic aluminum as raw material will generate corrosive gas, so it is difficult to carry out large-scale industrial production at present.
Where to Buy AlN in Bulk?
Heeger Materials Inc., a professional supplier and manufacturer of high-quality AlN, leverages extensive expertise in supply and export to offer competitive prices. We provide customized solutions to meet specific requirements, ensuring exceptional quality and customer satisfaction. You can safely choose to buy AlN from Heeger Materials Inc.