As an application engineer working with various NanoFoil® applications, I have learned which common items are very handy to have with me whenever I am working with NanoFoil®. Leather gloves, tweezers, a glass cutter, metal strait edge / ruler, 9V battery, hydraulic or spring loaded press, high-temp tape, foam, and aluminum blocks are all used often. With the exception of the press, this equipment is all quite portable and inexpensive. There are good reasons for each item on the list:
- Leather gloves: Protect your hands when you must handle reactive foil.
- Eye protection: This should be fairly self-explanatory. Your eyes are important – keep them safe!
- Nitrile gloves: Used to keep finger oils away from bonding surfaces.
-
Flat tweezers: Better than gloves for handling preforms and positioning parts. - Glass cutter: Easily cut pieces of foil to size/shape.
- Metal straight edge / ruler: Used to guide the glass cutter for a straight cut.
- 9V battery: Can be used as a backup for activation of foil.
- Hydraulic or spring loaded press: Applies pressure during assembly and compensates for minute but important settling of the assembly.
- High-temp tape: Used to shield surfaces from excess solder or to position foil or parts.
- Foam and aluminum blocks: Distribute pressure evenly during assembly.
These items are all used on a daily basis here at the Indium Corporation, where we are the supplier and also one of the largest users of NanoFoil® in the world.