High-Purity Tin

Tin occupies one of the most storied positions in human metallurgy. Bronze — an alloy of copper and tin — defined an entire epoch of civilization roughly five thousand years ago, giving armies sharper weapons and builders stronger tools. Today, tin has quietly assumed an equally foundational role in the electronics age, serving as the principal constituent of lead-free solder alloys that connect virtually every circuit board, semiconductor package, and electronic device on the planet. Beyond soldering, high-purity tin enables transparent conducting oxides, electroplated protective coatings, and — most excitingly — the tin oxide electron transport layers powering the rapid ascent of perovskite solar cells toward 27% efficiency.

Eata Energy supplies high-purity tin metal ranging from 99.9% (3N) to 99.999% (5N), available as ingots, pellets, shot, wire, foil, powder, and sputtering targets. Every batch ships with a detailed Certificate of Analysis generated through ICP-MS and GDMS characterization, ensuring the material consistency that both established manufacturing processes and cutting-edge research programs require.

Fundamental Properties of Tin Metal

Tin's position in Group 14 of the periodic table, atomic number 50, confers a distinctive dual personality: at room temperature, it exists as the familiar silvery-white β-tin (white tin) with a tetragonal crystal structure, but below 13.2°C it slowly transforms into α-tin (gray tin), a brittle, non-metallic allotrope with a diamond cubic structure. This transformation, known as "tin pest," can be a concern in cryogenic applications but is readily managed through alloy design.

Figure 1: Shiny silvery-white high-purity tin pellets and granules scattered on dark polished granite

Tin exhibits the largest number of stable isotopes of any element — ten in total — a nuclear peculiarity with no practical consequence for most applications but of interest in isotope geochemistry and certain nuclear physics experiments. For electronics and photovoltaic applications, natural isotopic abundance is entirely suitable.

Available Forms & Specifications

Eata Energy stocks tin in a comprehensive range of physical forms, each optimized for specific processing routes from alloy melting and electroplating through thin-film deposition and materials research.

Tin Ingots, Pellets & Shot

These formats provide feedstock for solder alloy melting, electroplating anode charging, chemical synthesis, and general metallurgical operations. Cast under protective atmosphere to minimize surface oxidation.

• Ingot weight: 500 g to 25 kg, standard bar or custom cast
• Pellets: 3×3 mm to 6×6 mm cylinders, for evaporation and synthesis
• Shot: 2 mm to 10 mm spherical or irregular granules
• Purity: 99.9% (3N) to 99.999% (5N)

Tin Wire, Foil & Ribbon

Wrought tin products support soldering research, corrosion testing, alloy development, and specialized sealing applications. Tin's softness and low melting point make it exceptionally easy to form into thin sections.

• Wire diameter: 0.5 mm to 6 mm, on spools or cut-to-length
• Foil: 0.025 mm to 2 mm, widths up to 200 mm
• Ribbon: 0.1×1 mm to 2×20 mm, custom cross-sections

Figure 2: Stack of ultra-thin high-purity tin foil sheets in a clean laboratory environment

Tin Sputtering Targets

HIP-consolidated tin sputtering targets support research into ITO deposition, SnO2 electron transport layers, and novel tin-based thin-film systems. Fine grain structure ensures uniform target erosion and reproducible film properties.

• Purity: 99.9% (3N) to 99.99% (4N)
• Dimensions: 2-inch to 8-inch diameter, planar configuration
• Grain size: <50 μm for uniform erosion

Tin Powder

High-purity tin powder serves powder metallurgy compaction, solder paste formulation, chemical synthesis, and research into tin-based nanomaterials and intermetallic compounds.

• Particle size: 5 μm to 150 μm, nano available on request
• Morphologies: spherical (atomized) or irregular (milled)
• Apparent density: 3.0–4.5 g/cm³ depending on morphology

Key Application Areas

Lead-Free Solder Alloys

Since the EU RoHS Directive took effect in 2006, tin has become the dominant constituent of virtually all electronic solder alloys. SAC305 (Sn96.5/Ag3.0/Cu0.5) remains the industry standard for surface-mount and wave soldering applications, offering a melting range of 217–220°C, good wetting characteristics, and acceptable mechanical reliability. Research programs continue to explore next-generation solder formulations — including Sn-Bi, Sn-Zn, and Sn-In alloys — that offer lower processing temperatures for temperature-sensitive components while maintaining long-term joint reliability. Our high-purity tin starting material, with controlled impurity levels of Pb < 50 ppm and Cd < 5 ppm, ensures RoHS compliance and consistent alloy performance.

Figure 3: SAC305 lead-free solder wire spool beside solder joints on a green circuit board

Tin Oxide (SnO2) Electron Transport Layers

Tin dioxide has emerged as the electron transport layer (ETL) material of choice for perovskite solar cells, achieving certified efficiencies exceeding 25% in flexible devices and 26.7% in optimized architectures. SnO2 offers a compelling combination of wide bandgap (~3.6 eV), excellent optical transparency, high electron mobility, and low-temperature processability that makes it compatible with both rigid glass and flexible polymer substrates. Key research fronts include surface passivation strategies to reduce oxygen vacancy defects, bilayer configurations combining ALD and solution-processed SnO2, and doping with foreign atoms to tune conduction band alignment with perovskite absorbers. High-purity tin metal serves as the precursor for both sol-gel SnO2 nanoparticle synthesis and atomic layer deposition using tetrakis(dimethylamino)tin (TDMASn).

Electroplating & Surface Finishes

Tin and tin-alloy electroplating provides solderable surfaces, corrosion protection, and anti-galling properties for electrical connectors, busbars, and fasteners. Matte tin deposits (0.3–1.0 μm) serve as the standard finish for PCB pads and component leads, while bright tin and tin-bismuth alloys offer decorative and functional coatings. Research into tin whisker mitigation — the spontaneous growth of conductive filaments from electroplated tin surfaces — remains an active field, with approaches including nickel underlayers, annealing treatments, and alloy modifications.

Figure 4: Perovskite solar cell test sample with golden-brown active layer on measurement stage

Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) & Transparent Conductors

Tin oxide constitutes approximately 10% by weight of indium tin oxide (In₂O₃:Sn), the dominant transparent conducting oxide in flat-panel displays, touchscreens, and solar cells. The tin dopant contributes free electrons to the conduction band of the In₂O₃ matrix, achieving sheet resistances below 15 Ω/sq with optical transparency exceeding 85%. High-purity tin with controlled impurity profiles is essential for consistent ITO sputtering target fabrication and reproducible film properties.

Alloy Development & Materials Research

Tin serves as a key component in numerous functional alloy systems beyond solder: pewter (Sn-Sb-Cu) for decorative arts, Babbitt metal (Sn-Sb-Cu) for bearing surfaces, fusible alloys (Sn-Bi-Pb-In) with melting points as low as 47°C for fire safety devices, and NiTiSn half-Heusler compounds for thermoelectric energy conversion. Research into tin-based anode materials for lithium-ion batteries — exploiting the high theoretical capacity of Sn-Li alloys (990 mAh/g) — addresses the challenges of volume expansion and cycle life that have limited commercial adoption.

Figure 5: Bright silvery-white electroplated tin coating on a copper busbar in a plating facility

Purity Grades & Recommended Applications

Tin purity requirements vary substantially across applications. The matrix below guides appropriate grade selection.

Analytical Verification & Documentation

Eata Energy certifies every tin batch through a multi-technique analytical protocol ensuring material consistency and compliance with relevant standards.

• ICP-MS: quantitative trace element analysis at ppb detection levels
• ICP-OES: rapid multi-element screening for production lots
• GDMS: ultra-trace bulk impurity profiling for 5N grades
• XRF: non-destructive composition verification
• Differential scanning calorimetry: melting range and alloy phase verification

Tailored Specifications & Custom Solutions

Research programs and manufacturing process development frequently require tin configurations beyond standard catalog offerings. Eata Energy works directly with your technical team to develop bespoke solutions.

• Custom alloy development: SAC305 variants, Sn-Bi, Sn-Zn, Sn-In, Sn-Ag-Cu-RE compositions
• Non-standard geometries: machined anodes, shaped charges, conical evaporation sources
• Enhanced purity: 5N (99.999%) grade with dedicated electrorefining and GDMS verification
• Solder paste precursors: pre-alloyed spherical powder at custom particle size distributions
• Flexible scale: from 100 g research quantities to multi-kilogram production lots

Contact our materials engineers during project planning to optimize tin grade, form, and specification for your specific solder system, plating bath, or device architecture.

For Research or Industrial Raw Materials, Not For Personal Medical Use!