Induction-based systems and methods for joining substrates together

Abstract

To provide induction-based devices for joining substrates together.SOLUTION: An exemplary method of joining a first substrate 108-1 with a second substrate 108-2 includes applying a filler material 112 between respective portions of the first substrate 108-1 and the second substrate 108-2, the filler material 112 including an electrically conducting and / or magnetic material, wherein the filler material 112 and the respective portions define a joint 120; applying an alternating magnetic field to the joint 120 to heat the electrically conducting material to a reaction temperature; in response to heating the electrically conducting material to the reaction temperature, energizing the joint 120 using energy released from the electrically conducting material; cooling the joint 120 to join the first substrate 108-1 with the second substrate 108-2.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This specification generally relates to a system for joining two substrates together, and more particularly to an induction-based system and method for joining substrates together.

[0002] Background Welding is a manufacturing process for joining materials together, including metals, plastics, and other materials. In welding, heat and / or pressure, or both, are used to melt a portion of the materials, and the melted portions can be fused together upon cooling. The heat used in the welding process can be generated by a heat source such as a gas flame, an electric arc, a laser, an electron beam, or ultrasonic waves. Welding often requires high temperatures to melt the base materials, and thus the heating method can be inefficient.

[0003] Summary According to an aspect of this specification, a method for joining a first substrate to a second substrate is provided. The method includes applying a filling material between portions of each of the first substrate and the second substrate, wherein the filling material includes a conductive material and / or a magnetic material, and the filling material and each portion define a joint; applying an alternating magnetic field to the joint to heat the conductive material to a reaction temperature; applying energy to the joint using energy released from the conductive material in response to heating the conductive material to the reaction temperature; and cooling the joint to join the first substrate to the second substrate.

[0004] According to another aspect of this specification, an induction-based apparatus for joining substrates together is provided. The apparatus includes a housing, an inlet for receiving a filling material including a conductive material, an induction heating assembly housed in the housing and configured to receive the filling material from the inlet and inductively apply energy to the conductive material of the filling material by applying an alternating magnetic field, and a nozzle for discharging the filling material to which energy has been applied for joining two substrates.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0005] The embodiments will be described with reference to the following drawings.

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[0006] Detailed Description The present disclosure describes an induction-based system and method for joining two substrates together. A filling material includes a conductive material and / or a magnetic material and is applied between portions of each of a first substrate and a second substrate. Each of the portions and the filling material together define a joint of the two substrates. The conductive material and / or the magnetic material is heated to a reaction temperature via induction. In response to heating the conductive material and / or the magnetic material to the reaction temperature, energy is imparted to the joint using energy released from the conductive material and / or the magnetic material. Upon cooling, the two substrates are joined together. The filling material, particularly the conductive material and / or the magnetic material, can be specifically selected based on the heating characteristics (e.g., reaction temperature, energy release profile, etc.) of the filling material, particularly the conductive material and / or the magnetic material, to enable thermal control of the joining operation.

[0007] FIG. 1 shows an exemplary system 100 for joining two substrates according to the present disclosure. The system 100 includes an induction-based apparatus 104 (also simply referred to as apparatus 104) for joining a first substrate 108-1 to a second substrate 108-2 (collectively referred to as substrate 108 and generally referred to as substrate 108 - this nomenclature can be used elsewhere in this specification). The substrate 108 can include plastics, metals, alloys, thermoplastics, composites, and combinations thereof, among others. In some embodiments, the substrate 108 can be made of dissimilar materials. For example, the first substrate 108-1 can include a metallic material, while the second substrate 108-2 can include a plastic material.

[0008] The substrates 108 are joined together at a joint 120 defined by respective portions 110-1 and 110-2. The portions 110 can be end portions, such as to form a corner joint, or the portions 110 can be portions that overlap each surface of the substrate 108. For example, in this embodiment, the portions 110 are substantially planar. In other embodiments, the portions 110 can be curved or otherwise non-planar and the portions 110 can conform to each other to form the joint 120.

[0009] The substrate 108 is joined together using a filling material 112. The filling material 112 includes a conductive material and / or a magnetic material. In particular, the filling material 112 is applied between each portion 110 of the substrate 108. The portion 110 and the filling material 112 together define a joint 120. The joint 120 can be substantially planar as in this embodiment, or the joint 120 can be shaped in other ways based on the arrangement of the portion 110 and the portion 110.

[0010] The filling material 112 includes a conductive material and / or a magnetic material. For example, the filling material 112 can be a reactive metal compound such as a nanothermite or a microthermite. In particular, the nanothermite or the microthermite includes an oxidizing agent and a reducing agent (such as a metal and a metal oxide). The nanothermite or the microthermite can be heated or energized by induction. Specifically, the application of an alternating magnetic field induces eddy currents and / or hysteresis (described in more detail below) in the nanothermite or the microthermite, which in turn induces a reaction with the core component, thereby releasing energy. More generally, the conductive material can include various types of fluids (including liquids, gases, and combinations) containing conductive particles or components. The conductive particles or components allow eddy currents and / or hysteresis to be introduced into the conductive material to energize the conductive material. For example, the conductive material can include a reactive metal compound, compounds in gaseous, liquid, and solid states, slurries of materials containing multiple phases and states, synthetic polymers and non-synthetic polymers, etc. The conductive material can further include a mixture of layers of materials, a multi-coated metal with metamaterials, a hybrid mixture of a liquid and an inert reactive metal compound, or other suitable combinations of materials. In some embodiments, the conductive material can be a metal powder or other suitable powder for a sintering operation, as further described below.

[0011] Device 104 is generally configured to use induction-based techniques for joining substrates 108 together. Consequently, device 104 includes an induction heating assembly 130. Induction heating assembly 130 is generally configured to heat joint 120 via induction. Specifically, assembly 130 includes a coil 132 coupled to a power supply circuit 134. Circuit 134 is configured to pass a current through coil 132 to generate a magnetic field. Circuit 134 can be an electronic oscillator or other suitable circuit for passing high-frequency alternating current through coil 132. Accordingly, an alternating magnetic field is induced in coil 132. In some examples, coil 132 can be oriented adjacent to the joint region to enable, for example, joining large substrates 108 together. In other embodiments, coil 132 can be configured to surround the joint region such that the joint region is located at the center of the coil and induces a stronger magnetic field in the joint region. In such embodiments, the size of substrate 108 may be limited based on the size of coil 132.

[0012] During operation, power supply circuit 134 is configured to pass a current through coil 132 as indicated by the arrow in FIG. 1. In accordance with Ampere's law, the current flowing through coil 132 induces a magnetic field 136 around coil 132. In some implementations, power supply circuit 134 is further configured to vary the current flowing through coil 132, thereby varying magnetic field 136. In other implementations, coil 132 can be configured to move relative to joint region 118 to vary magnetic field 136. For example, coil 132 can be coupled to a positioning mechanism to move along the length of stationary joint region 118.

[0013] Next, the operation of system 100 will be described in conjunction with FIG. 2. FIG. 2 shows a flowchart of a method 200 for joining two substrates. Method 200 is described in conjunction with the performance of the method in system 100. In other examples, method 200 can be performed by other suitable systems.

[0014] In block 205, the filling material is applied between each portion 110 of the first substrate 108-1 and the second substrate 108-2. The filling material includes conductive materials such as reactive metal compounds (e.g., in a liquid or gaseous state), polymers, thermoplastics, multi-coated metals with metamaterials. In some examples, the filling material can include one or more additional conductive materials such as reactive metal compounds (e.g., in a liquid or gaseous state), polymers, thermoplastics, and multi-coated metals with metamaterials. The conductive materials can include nanonemitters, metamaterials, and in addition to natural or synthetic polymers and thermoplastics, nanorods or nanowires (e.g., composed of gold, silver, copper, etc.), graphene, or other suitable composite materials.

[0015] More generally, the filling material 112 can include a plurality of conductive materials and / or magnetic materials having different configurations (e.g., filling structures such as particle size, simple cubic packing, face-centered cubic packing, and hexagonal packing), different structures (e.g., nanowires or nanorods, other particulate materials, or liquids), different reaction temperatures, different adhesion properties (e.g., better adhesion to different materials), or otherwise different energy release profiles.

[0016] For example, in different layers, according to the desired energy release profile, conductive materials can be combined to form the filling material as a homogeneous or heterogeneous mixture, etc. In particular, due to the change in the energy release profile, the device 104 can accurately control the welding operation by controlling which materials are heated and when they are heated.

[0017] For example, referring to FIGS. 3A-3D, exemplary filling materials 300, 310, 320, and 330 are shown.

[0018] The filling material 300 shown in FIG. 3A includes a medium 302 and nanotemitters 304 (i.e., conductive materials) dispersed throughout the medium 302. The medium 302 can be, for example, a metal, an alloy, a polymer, a combination of materials, or other suitable materials for containing the nanotemitters 304. In some embodiments, the medium 302 can be substantially fluid to allow the nanotemitters 304 to be freely dispersed throughout the medium 302. In other embodiments, the medium 302 can be a gel or solid for fixing the positions of the nanotemitters 304 within the medium 302.

[0019] The filling material 310 shown in FIG. 3B includes a medium 312, a first nanotransmitter 314, and a second nanotransmitter 316. Similar to the filling material 300, the first nanotransmitter 314 and the second nanotransmitter 316 are dispersed throughout the medium 312. The medium 312 can be a metal, a polymer, a combination of materials, or other suitable materials for containing the nanotransmitters 314 and 316. In some embodiments, the medium 312 can be fluid to allow the nanotransmitters 314 and 316 to be freely dispersed throughout the medium 312. In other embodiments, the medium 312 can be a gel or solid for fixing the positions of the nanotransmitters 314 and 316 within the medium 312. In this embodiment, the nanotransmitters 314 and 316 are uniformly distributed throughout the medium 312.

[0020] In another embodiment of the filling material 320 as shown in FIG. 3C, the first nanotransmitter 324 and the second nanotransmitter 326 can be separated. Specifically, the medium 322 can fix the first nanotransmitter 324 to the first surface of the filling material 320 and the second nanotransmitter 326 to the second surface of the filling material 320. In such an embodiment, the medium 322 can be a gel or solid to allow separation of the nanotransmitter 324 and the nanotransmitter 326.

[0021] In yet other embodiments, the filling material may not include a medium in which the conductive material is dispersed throughout. For example, the filling material 330 shown in FIG. 3D includes a first nanothermite 334 and a second nanothermite 336 that are mixed with each other but not contained in a medium. For example, the nanothermites 334 and 336 can form a powder for a sintering operation. In other embodiments, the filling material 330 can contain a single type of nanothermite (e.g., only the first nanothermite 334 or only the second nanothermite 336). The first nanothermite and the second nanothermite can be heated to form an alloy.

[0022] Returning to FIG. 2, at block 205, the filling material can be selected according to the type of joining operation. For example, in the case of a sintering operation, the filling material 330 can be used, while in the case of a soldering operation, the filling material 300 can be used. To weld two dissimilar materials together, the filling material 320 can be used. The filling material can be further selected according to the energy release profile of one or more conductive materials contained in the filling material. For example, to join two substrates using a relatively high temperature for joining, the filling material 310 can be used to enable heating the first nanothermite 314 with lower input energy, causing a chain reaction to impart energy to the second nanothermite 316 and achieve the temperature for joining the two substrates.

[0023] In some embodiments, at block 205, a magnetic insulator can be applied to the joint to limit the application of the filling material 112 to a specific region. For example, referring to FIG. 4, the filling material 412 is applied between two substrates 408-1 and 408-2 and is restricted by a magnetic insulator 420.

[0024] Returning to FIG. 2, in block 210, an alternating magnetic field 136 is applied to the joint 120 to heat the conductive material and / or the magnetic material to the reaction temperature. In particular, applying the alternating magnetic field 136 can include applying an alternating current to the coil 132 by the power supply circuit 134 to induce a magnetic field in order to induce the magnetic field.

[0025] According to Faraday's law of induction, the changing magnetic field 136 induces eddy currents in nearby conductors, particularly the conductive material of the filling material. When eddy currents are induced in the conductive material, energy is imparted to the conductive material, and the conductive material is heated to the reaction temperature of the conductive material. In some embodiments, energy can be imparted to the conductive material via magnetic hysteresis. In particular, the magnetization force on the internal friction of the molecules of the magnet generates thermal energy. The energy lost by heat is the hysteresis loss. When a magnetic force is applied, the molecules of the magnetic material of the filling material 112 align in a first direction. When the magnetic force reverses, the internal friction of the molecules of the magnetic material opposes the reversal of the magnetism, resulting in magnetic hysteresis and thus heating the magnetic material. In some embodiments, in block 210, method 200 can use both magnetic hysteresis heating and induction heating via eddy currents to impart energy to the conductive material and / or the magnetic material for the joining operation.

[0026] In embodiments where a magnetic insulator is applied, heating can be restricted to regions of the filling material not inhibited by the insulator. Thus, applying a magnetic insulator can provide greater control across the joining operation and the regions joined together.

[0027] At block 215, when the reaction temperature of the conductive material is reached, the conductive material releases energy according to the energy release profile of the conductive material, imparting energy to the joint. That is, in response to heating the conductive material to the reaction temperature, the energy released from the conductive material can be used to impart energy to the joint. In particular, when the reaction temperature of the conductive material is reached, the conductive material undergoes an exothermic reaction, releases energy, and can impart energy to one or more filling materials and portion 110.

[0028] For example, referring to FIG. 5, a sintering operation 500 is shown. In particular, imparting energy to the joint can include imparting energy to each portion of the first substrate and the second substrate without liquefying, and sintering the first substrate to the second substrate. In sintering operation 500, a filling material 512 containing a conductive material is applied between the first substrate 508-1 and the second substrate 508-2. Specifically, the filling material 512 contacts the first surface 510-1 of the first substrate 508-1 and the second surface 510-2 of the second substrate 508-2. When the conductive material is heated to the reaction temperature of the conductive material, the filling material 512, the first surface 510-1, and the second surface 510-2 are heated without melting to the melting point. The filling material 512 fuses with the first surface 510-1 and the second surface 510-2, thus sintering the first substrate 508-1 to the second substrate 508-2. For example, the filling material 512 can include a metal powder such as the filling material 330 to enable a dense sintering operation 500. In some embodiments, the sintering operation 500 can further include applying pressure to the joint, as indicated by arrow P in FIG. 5, for example, to support and assist the sintering of the first substrate 508-1 and the second substrate 508-2.

[0029] In some embodiments, the filling material can be energized for the sintering process by heating and / or by pressureless or pre-assist techniques, and through control of densification and / or control of grain growth, the substrate can be fused, welded joints and / or castings can be formed to create different shapes, and material properties such as strength, conductivity, thermal conductivity, and permeability can be improved.

[0030] Referring now to FIG. 6, a welding operation 600 is shown. In particular, applying energy to the joint can include melting each surface of each portion of the first substrate and the second substrate to weld the first substrate to the second substrate. In welding operation 600, a filling material 612 containing a conductive material is applied between the first substrate 608-1 and the second substrate 608-2. Specifically, the filling material 612 contacts the first surface 610-1 of the first substrate 608-1 and the second surface 610-2 of the second substrate 608-2. When the conductive material is heated to the reaction temperature of the conductive material, the first surface 610-1 and the second surface 610-2 can be melted and welded together upon cooling. For example, welding operation 600 can utilize filling material 300.

[0031] Referring now to FIG. 7, a soldering operation 700 is shown. In particular, applying energy to the joint can include applying energy to the soldering portion of the filling material to solder the first substrate to the second substrate. In soldering operation 700, a filling material 712 containing a conductive material is applied between the first substrate 708-1 and the second substrate 708-2. Specifically, the filling material 712 contacts the first surface 710-1 of the first substrate 708-1 and the second surface 710-2 of the second substrate 708-2. When the conductive material is heated to the reaction temperature of the conductive material, the filling material 712, and in particular the dispersion medium in which the conductive material is dispersed, can be melted to solder the first substrate 708-1 and the second substrate 708-2 together. That is, the filling material, and in particular the dispersion medium, can act to join the first substrate and the second substrate 708.

[0032] In yet other embodiments, imparting energy to the joint can include heating a further conductive material to a further reaction temperature. That is, the energy released to the first conductive material can initiate a chain reaction to heat additional conductive materials to their respective reaction temperatures. For example, the first conductive material may have a relatively low reaction temperature, while the second conductive material may have a relatively high reaction temperature. The conductive material can be heated to the reaction temperature of the first conductive material, undergo an exothermic reaction, and thus release energy. The released energy can further impart energy to the second conductive material, enabling the second conductive material to reach its relatively high reaction temperature. The second conductive material can release additional energy. The additional energy can be used to continue the chain reaction of the conductive materials, or the additional energy can impart energy to other components of the joint. That is, the additional energy released from the second conductive material can be utilized in the sintering operation 500, welding operation 600, or soldering operation 700 in addition to or instead of the energy released from the first conductive material. Such a chain reaction can be utilized, for example, to join substrates including materials that are joined at a relatively high temperature with a lower input requirement.

[0033] In other embodiments, two different conductive materials can be used to join two different substrates. For example, when the first reaction temperature of the first conductive material is reached, the first substrate can be bonded to the filling material, and when the second reaction temperature of the second conductive material is reached, the second substrate can be bonded to the filling material. That is, the joining of the first substrate and the second substrate can be a two-step process in which one of the substrates is intermediately bonded to the filling material.

[0034] In yet other embodiments, instead of using energy from the first conductive material to heat the second conductive material, blocks 210 and 215 can be repeated to heat the second conductive material to the reaction temperature of the second conductive material. Specifically, by controlling the strength of the magnetic field 136 (e.g., by controlling the current supplied to the coil 132 by the circuit 134), the first conductive material can be specifically heated to the first reaction temperature, and then the magnetic field 136 can be changed to heat the second conductive material to the second reaction temperature.

[0035] In some embodiments, in blocks 210 and 215, secondary techniques can be used to further bond the first substrate to the second substrate. The secondary techniques can be performed simultaneously or sequentially with blocks 210 and 215. Examples of secondary techniques include, but are not limited to, solid state bonding (e.g., anodic / wafer bonding, diffusion bonding, ultrasonic wire bonding, cold welding, explosion bonding, friction stir bonding, friction welding, etc.), soldering / brazing (e.g., furnace, laser reflow, resistance, dip, wave, active brazing, flip chip bonding, etc.), welding (e.g., laser beam, electron beam, percussion, plasma, gas tungsten, resistance, glass sealing, etc.), adhesive bonding (e.g., die attach, flip chip bonding, sealing, etc.), and combinations of the above. Further, method 200 can further include applying an alternating magnetic field to the joint at block 210 simultaneously or sequentially with applying pressure to the joint.

[0036] At block 220, the joint is cooled to bond the first substrate 108-1 to the second substrate 108-2. Specifically, when the joint is cooled, the first substrate and the second substrate 108 can be joined or bonded into a single final product.

[0037] Accordingly, method 200 provides an induction-based technique for joining two substrates. The induction-based technique can be combined with other welding and / or bonding techniques to form a hybrid system. The induction-based technique can be used on Earth (e.g., for applications on land, in the air, or underwater), in space (e.g., for celestial bodies, the moon, Mars, other planets, satellites, asteroids, meteoroids, and other celestial objects). In some embodiments, the induction-based technique can use in-situ space resources such as lunar and Martian regolith, materials of other planets, satellites, asteroids, meteoroids, and other celestial objects to supplement the filling material. Further, the induction welding technique localizes energy generation and molten material in situations where space for micro-joining applications is limited.

[0038] For example, titanium powder (Ti) is mixed with boron (B) or carbon (C) to form a filling material, pressed between molybdenum (Mo) surfaces, and ignited to form a Mo-TiB2-Mo or Mo-TiC-Mo weld. In other embodiments, a mixture of aluminum (Al), nickel (Ni), and copper (Cu) can also be used as the filling material. Further, a combination of a metal and a metal oxide can be used as the filling material for joining substrates, and the filling material can be composed of powdery, layered, laminated, and core-shell composite materials.

[0039] Referring now to FIG. 8, an exemplary induction-based apparatus 800 for joining substrates is shown. Apparatus 800 includes a housing 804 for accommodating an induction heating assembly 830, a nozzle 820, and an inlet 822. In other implementations, the coil within the induction heating assembly 830 can also be configured around the nozzle 820.

[0040] The induction heating assembly 830 includes a coil 832 housed in a housing 804 and connected to a power supply circuit 834. The circuit is configured to pass a current through the coil 832 to generate a magnetic field. The circuit 834 can be an electronic oscillator or other suitable circuit for passing a high-frequency alternating current through the coil 832. Accordingly, an alternating magnetic field is induced in the coil 832. The coil 832 is configured to surround a heating region 818 such that the heating region 818 is at the center of the coil 832 and induces a stronger magnetic field in the heating region 818. The induction heating assembly 830 can be connected to a trigger 840 to control the operation of the induction heating assembly 830. During operation, the power supply circuit 834 is configured to pass a current through the coil 832 as indicated by the arrow. In accordance with Ampere's law, the current flowing through the coil 832 induces a magnetic field 136 around the coil 832. In some embodiments, the power supply circuit 834 is further configured to vary the current passing through the coil 832, thereby varying the magnetic field 836. In other embodiments, the coil 832 can be configured to move relative to the heating region 818 to vary the magnetic field 836. For example, the coil 832 can be connected to a positioning mechanism to move along the length direction of the stationary heating region 818. Specifically, the application of the alternating magnetic field induces eddy currents and / or hysteresis (described in more detail below) in the nanotermit or microtermite, which in turn induces a reaction with the core component, thereby releasing energy.

[0041] The heating region 818 is connected to the inlet 822 to receive the material from the inlet and is connected to the nozzle 820 to discharge the heated material from the apparatus 800. Specifically, the filling material is supplied through the inlet 822 and heated by the induction heating assembly 830 in the heating region 818. The filling material can include a dispersion medium and a conductive material dispersed throughout the dispersion medium. The conductive material can be a reactive metal compound such as a nanotermit or a microtermit, and the dispersion medium can be a gel or a solid to hold the filling material together and supply it to the apparatus 800. Thus, the induction heating assembly 830 imparts energy to the filling material to change it from a solid or gel state to a fluid or plasma state with energy applied, and discharges it from the nozzle 820. The fluid or plasma with energy applied can be applied between two substrates to join the two substrates together.

[0042] The present disclosure provides a system and method for joining two substrates using induction-based techniques, whereby a filling material containing a conductive material is energized by induction heating. The two substrates can be made of different materials from each other. In induction welding techniques, a slurry of a nanoenergy composite material, a metamaterial slurry, a polymer slurry, or a reactive metal compound slurry can be used as the filling material. The properties of the filling material can be selected to control the energy release profile. Further, the use of induction ignition and / or induction heating allows for consistent heating across the joint. Thus, the joint is not limited to a linear weld or joint and can be in a substantially planar configuration.

[0043] The scope of the claims should not be limited by the embodiments described in the above examples, but should be given the broadest interpretation consistent with the overall description.

Claims

1. 1. A method of bonding a first substrate to a second substrate, comprising the steps of: applying a filler material between each portion of the first substrate and the second substrate, the filler material comprising a conductive material and / or a magnetic material, the filler material and the each portion defining a joint; applying an alternating magnetic field to the joint to heat the conductive material to a reaction temperature; energizing the joint using energy released from the conductive material in response to heating the conductive material to the reaction temperature; cooling the bond and bonding the first substrate to the second substrate. A method comprising:

2. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein applying energy to the bond comprises applying energy to a surface of each of the portions of the first substrate and the second substrate without liquefying to sinter the first substrate to the second substrate.

3. The method of claim 2 further comprising applying pressure to the joint to support sintering of the first substrate to the second substrate.

4. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein applying energy to the joint comprises melting a surface of each of the portions of the first substrate and the second substrate to weld the first substrate to the second substrate.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein applying energy to the joint comprises applying energy to a soldering portion of the fill material to solder the first substrate to the second substrate.

6. 10. The method of claim 1, wherein the conductive material comprises at least one of a reactive metal compound in a liquid state, a reactive metal compound in a gas state, a polymer, a thermoplastic, and a multi-coated metal with a metamaterial.

7. 10. The method of claim 1, wherein the filler material further comprises additional conductive and / or magnetic materials including one or more of reactive metal compounds in a liquid state, reactive metal compounds in a gaseous state, polymers, thermoplastics, and multi-coated metals with metamaterials.

8. applying energy to the bond heating the further conductive and / or magnetic material to a second reaction temperature; further energizing the joint in response to heating the additional conductive and / or magnetic material to the second reaction temperature. The method of claim 7, comprising:

9. further applying energy to the bond; applying energy to a surface of each of the portions of the first substrate and the second substrate without liquefying to sinter the first substrate to the second substrate; melting a surface of each of the portions of the first substrate and the second substrate to weld the first substrate to the second substrate; applying energy to a soldering portion of the filler material to solder the first substrate to the second substrate; The method of claim 8 , further comprising one of:

10. heating the conductive and / or magnetic material to a reaction temperature; inducing eddy currents in the conductive and / or magnetic material; inducing magnetic hysteresis in said conductive and / or magnetic material; The method of claim 1 , further comprising one of:

11. The method of claim 1 , further comprising applying a magnetic insulator to the joint to limit the area joined by the fill material.

12. The method of claim 1 , further comprising further bonding the first substrate to the second substrate using a secondary technique.

13. The method of claim 1 , further comprising applying a pressure to the joint simultaneously with applying the alternating magnetic field.

14. The method of claim 1 , wherein the joint is substantially planar.

15. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first substrate and the second substrate comprise dissimilar materials.

16. 1. An induction-based apparatus for bonding substrates, comprising: Housing and an inlet for receiving a fill material comprising a conductive material; an induction heating assembly contained within the housing, receiving the filler material through the inlet; Applying an alternating magnetic field to inductively energize the conductive material of the filler material. an induction heating assembly configured as described above; a nozzle for discharging the filler material to which energy has been applied for bonding the substrates; An apparatus comprising:

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