Abstract: A lid or cover for a ceramic enclosure is formed of a substrate of an iron-based alloy, e.g., Kovar, alternately plated and coated with electrolytic nickel and electroless nickel, with an outer gold electroplate. The alternate electroplate and electroless nickel layers render the lid highly corrosion resistant without the need for an expensive, unrecoverable buried gold layer.

Abstract: A lid for closing an electronics package exhibits a high corrosion resistance. The lid is formed of a metal substrate which is clad with rolled or worked nickel, and covered with a layer of gold or precious metal electroplate. At edges of the lid, which are not covered with cladding, a layer of nickel is electroplated, employing the dogbone effect to concentrate the metallization at the edges. The rolled or worked metal has a much smaller porosity than an electroplated layer, and the nickel cladding can be applied to the desired thickness in much less time than nickel electroplate.