TO-3 at Motorola around 1955. The lead spacing was originally intended to allow plugging the device into a then-common tube socket. The metal package can be attached to a heat sink, making it suitable for devices dissipating several watts of heat. Thermal compound is used to improve heat transfer between the device case and the heat sink. Since the device case is one of the electrical connections, an insulator may be required to electrically isolate the component from the heatsink. Insulating washers may be made of mica or other materials with good thermal conductivity. The case is used with high-power and
Solder joint over time. Solder used in making electrical connections also needs to have favorable electrical characteristics. Soft solder typically has a melting point range of , and is commonly used in electronics, plumbing, and sheet metal work. Alloys that melt between are the most commonly used. Soldering performed using alloys with a melting point above is called "hard soldering", "silver soldering", or brazing. In specific proportions, some alloys can become eutectic — that is, their melting point is the same as their freezing point, and the alloy's melting point is lower than that of either component. Non-eutectic alloys have markedly