RoHS / Pb-free Policy

Microsemi Corporation (MSC) is committed to manage its business in an environmentally responsible manner and Microsemi has RoHS and Pb-free initiatives to support those customers that require RoHS compliant and/or Pb-free products. Most plastic encapsulated products will be transitioned to a Pb-free finish and also use mold compounds that are RoHS compliant for a 260C reflow temperature. For additional information regarding Pb-free or RoHS compliant products, the customer should contact the Microsemi Division that provides that product.
	Hermetic military products manufactured by Microsemi are processed in accordance with requirements specified by MIL-PRF-19500, MIL-PRF-38534 and MIL-PRF-38535. These requirements do not allow termination finishes that are Pb-free or RoHS compliant. If RoHS compliant hermetic products for equivalent commercial part numbers are required, the customer should contact the applicable Microsemi Division. In the case of Plastic Encapsulated and Commercial Hermetic packages, Microsemi may offer two versions of a product where one version will be RoHS compliant and the other will not be compliant. In those examples, the RoHS compliant version will include an "e#" designator as a suffix to the Part Number indicating the Pb-free 2nd level interconnect terminal finish category defined in JESD97. In these offerings, the most frequent terminal finish is pure Tin and the suffix of the part number is "e3".

Microsemi Corporation (“MSC”) is committed to support those customers requiring RoHS and/or Pb-free (Lead free) compliant components. The term Pb-free (Lead-free) is defined in JESD97 and applies to components in which the Lead (Pb) level in any of the raw materials and the end product is less than or equal to 0.1% by weight and also meets any Pb-free requirements/definitions adopted by the RoHS Directive 2002/95/EC. The RoHS term is an acronym for European Directive, Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment. This also means a component with Pb-free termination finish compatible with Pb-free soldering processes. The RoHS compliant components may include Pb in the internal high melting type solder connections or glass materials of the component as defined in the exemptions of the RoHS European Directive.

Although the RoHS directive requires the use of Pb-free lead finish and solder processes, there has been a historical concern about the growth of Tin whiskers when using these Pb-free processes. The most common Pb-free lead finish currently being used is 100% Matte Tin (Sn) and several IC manufacturers have shown that this lead finish is much less prone to whisker formation than older bright tin finishes. Microsemi will provide the reliability and tin whisker growth data that has been taken on its products. However, tin whisker growth is dependent on the environment that is seen by the product. Customers are encouraged to collect their own reliability data and perform a risk assessment based their individual requirements. For general information on tin whiskers please see the following sites;
NASA website on Tin whiskers: Nasa
NEMI Tin whisker activities NEMI
CALCE Tin Whisker Working Group CALCE

Important Information Disclaimer:

MSC represents and warrants that the information provided herein is to the best of its knowledge and belief accurate as of the date that it was provided. MSC bases such knowledge and belief on information provided by third parties, and MSC makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of such third party information. MSC has taken and will continue to take, reasonable steps to provide representative and accurate information to its Customers, but may not have conducted destructive testing or chemical analysis on incoming materials and chemicals. Certain MSC suppliers consider “material content” to be Confidential Information and thereby proprietary, whereby CAS numbers for such materials may not be available for release to Customers. MSC shall not be liable for loss of use, revenue, profit, or for any special, incidental, or consequential damages arising out of, connected with, or resulting from, the information provided in such Questionnaire, or otherwise; and in no event shall MSC's direct liability arising out of, connected with, or resulting from such information exceed the purchase price of the semiconductor component(s) referenced in such Questionnaire that MSC sold to the Customer during the three (3) months immediately prior to the date of such Questionnaire.