Fabrication of SiCw reinforced copper matrix composite by electroless copper plating

Dispersion strengthened copper matrix composites, including Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}/Cu, TiC/Cu, Si{sub 3}N{sub 4}/Cu, SiC/Cu, B{sub 4}C/Cu and Gr./Cu, offer a unique combination of high strength and high electrical and thermal conductivities and, as such, would be worthwhile to develop in the future. Methods for the production of dispersion strengthened copper matrix composites involve traditional melting and casting techniques and powder metallurgy which ranges from simple mechanical mixing to complex processing such as coprecipitation from salt solution, mechanical alloying and internal oxidation of the reactive elements. Traditional melting and casting are not useful because of the poor wettability between ceramic particles and molten copper, which leads to flocculation of the dispersoids. In general, SiC{sub w} always clusters and can not be dispersed uniformly in the copper matrix. But application by means of electroless plating followed by hot pressing to fabricate the composite may easily solve the clustering problem. Hence, fabrication of copper matrix composites reinforced with a uniform distribution of SiC{sub w} using electroless plating and the study of their properties are the emphases of this research.