Patent ID: 7078330

Claim:
A method of joining a metal electrode to a circuit card having a joining surface of a material which diffuses with tin when heated, comprising: forming a metal electrode comprising multiple metallic layers disposed on a substrate and including at least a first layer and a second layer, wherein the first layer is the metallic layer most remote from the substrate, includes an outermost surface of the metal electrode, and contains tin as a principal constituent, the second layer is in contact with the first layer and contains a metallic element which produces a eutectic reaction with tin, and the melting point of the first layer is higher than the melting point of the second layer; forming a circuit card by depositing a wiring layer on a base, the wiring layer having a joining surface of a material which diffuses with tin when heated; bringing the first layer of the metal electrode into contact with the joining surface of the wiring layer of the circuit card; and heating the metal electrode to a temperature at least equal to the lowest temperature at which a eutectic reaction occurs between the first and second layers, but lower than the melting point of the first layer, to join the metal electrode to the circuit card.