Silver Whiskers

Whisker (metallurgy)

Metal whiskering is a phenomenon that occurs in electrical devices when metals form long whisker-like projections over time. Tin whiskers were noticed and documented in the vacuum tube era of electronics early in the 20th century in equipment that used pure, or almost pure, tin solder in their production. It was noticed that small metal hairs or tendrils grew between metal solder pads, causing short circuits. Metal whiskers form in the presence of compressive stress. Germanium, zinc, cadmium, and even lead whiskers have been documented. Many techniques are used to mitigate the problem, including changes to the annealing process, the addition of elements like copper and nickel, and the inclusion of conformal coatings.

Whiskers

Whiskers, also known as vibrissae, are specialized sensory hairs that help most species of mammals sense their environment. Whiskers function as highly sensitive feelers that help mammals navigate the world in many different ways, including the detection of air currents and physical objects to aid in navigation, hunting, and spatial awareness. Whiskers can trigger reflexes to protect the eyes. Whiskers also play a significant role in the communication between individual animals in different species of mammals. They convey an animal's emotional state, essentially sending a message to other members of their species about what emotion they are feeling at the time. Whisker movement can be thought of as a form of language that animals use to silently communicate with the other animals around them.

Silver

Silver is a chemical element; it has symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity and reflectivity of any metal. Silver is found in the Earth's crust in the pure, free elemental form, as an alloy with gold (electrum) and other metals, and in minerals such as acanthite, argentite and chlorargyrite. Most silver is recovered as a byproduct of lead–zinc, copper and gold mining and refining.

Silver (color)

Silver or metallic gray is a color tone resembling gray that is a representation of the color of polished silver.

silver

Noun

1. A lustrous, white, metallic element, atomic number 47, atomic weight 107.87, symbol Ag.
2. Coins made from silver or any similar white metal.

Adjective

1. Made from silver.
2. Made from another white metal.

whiskers

Noun

1. plural of whisker
2. Faded creases around the crotch of blue jeans. Can be added artificially or created by daily wear over the lifetime of a garment.