CUSTOM CLAD METALS OFFER UNIQUE MATERIAL PROPERTIES FOR ADVANCED TECHNOLOGIES
Components used in sophisticated electronic and electrical applications require a range of diverse properties that cannot be met by just one material. Materion’s clad metal process, electron beam welding, electroplating and related technologies offer design engineers flexibility by combining metals to achieve unique property sets that meet specific requirements in applications such as smart phones, automotive electronics, EV batteries, medical devices, mining equipment and more.
The process of metal cladding joins dissimilar metals by applying high pressure without brazing alloys or adhesives. This method of metal joining allows us to custom engineer materials for specific applications. Because of our experience with virtually every base metal and cladding material combination, we can help our customers optimize surface and core metal characteristics as needed.
We routinely work with more than 200 alloys, including steel, copper, titanium, aluminum and refractory as well as precious metals, supplying global technology leaders in every market with the clad metal solutions they need to enable their applications.
Whether dealing with thermal management issues, extreme vibration, high voltage, galvanic corrosion, light-weighting, contact resistance or weldability, our clad metal solutions can meet your requirements.
PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT COLLABORATION AND PROTOTYPES
We design materials, fabricate prototypes and get samples to you quickly while maintaining focus on quality and application performance.
Contact a clad metal expert to discuss your unique design challenges.
CLAD METAL SOLUTIONS
While we develop customized solutions for specific applications, here are a few of our most popular clad products:
CONDUCTIVE eSTAINLESS STEELS: Improved Thermal Management
Our eStainless® clad material enhances performance and reliability by converting structural components into heat spreaders. A fully formable aluminum or copper clad metal laminate combined with stainless steel, eStainless material maintains high stiffness with 10-15x greater conductivity than conventional materials. |
DOVETAIL CLAD METAL: High Volume Cu-to-Al Assembly Efficiency for Li-Ion Batteries
Our patented side-by-side cladding process joins copper and aluminum in long continuous master coils for high-volume, low-cost laser assembly. Dovetail Clad® bus bar and lead tab materials have the lowest electrical resistance of any copper/aluminum interface for cooler lithium-ion packs. Low height and narrow joint widths enable compact, flexible designs. |
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iON CONNECTORS: Better Reliability Under the Hood
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FUEL CELL MATERIALS: High Temperature Corrosion Seals
Fuel cell and other high temperature assemblies require robust formability, weldability and excellent corrosion protection. Our special stainless steel/aluminum/nickel clad system creates a ceramic-like structure after in situ thermal diffusion, outperforming any metal system in hot molten carbonate environments. |
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STAINLESS CONNECTORS: High Performance in Exhaust Gas
To supply a stable electrical contact over long periods in extremely harsh environments and high temperatures, we created a stainless steel-based system inlaid with a thermally stable, high performance, multi-layer gold/palladium alloy. |
MEDICAL ELECTRONIC FOILS: Combined Power and Resistance
To produce a material system that combines low electrical contact resistance with high-resistivity sections, we clad selective inlays of high-performance precious metal alloys into high-resistance substrate foils less than .001" thick. These thin foils can then be etched into precision heating filaments for high energy drug vaporization. |
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SPRING CONTACTS: Eliminate Multi-Component Assemblies
Eliminate assembly costs and replace a three-piece relay of base plate, spring arm, and discrete electrical contact with a single material for stamping. Our electron beam welded strip with a thin gauge, high-performance alloy creates the reed portion of the relay with an integral inlaid gold/palladium/silver alloy contact point. |
INLAY OR TOPLAY SOLDERS: Improved Soldering Yields and Quality
Eliminate solder pastes or pre-forms and avoid additional assembly costs or yield losses due to variability of solder volume and locations. We offer a pre-solder strip solution, either as an inlay or toplay. The solder is precisely placed on the strip prior to stamping, and our pre-fluxing of solder stripes further simplifies assembly and improves final product yield. |
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WIREBOND LEADFRAMES: Automotive Safety Control Systems
To guarantee ultimate reliability and performance of control modules, Materion created aluminum clad inlay materials for bonding aluminum wire to pure aluminum bond pads. Unlike electroplated bond pads, this material offers extremely high process yields and robust life testing. |
We developed iON Connectors for high performance and stability amidst extreme temperature and vibrations. These specialty diffused layer alloys outperform electroplating and offer reduced gold content per connector.
