Features of the voiceless alveolo-palatal affricate:
Its manner of articulation is sibilantaffricate, which means it is produced by first stopping the air flow entirely, then directing it with the tongue to the sharp edge of the teeth, causing high-frequency turbulence.
It is heavily palatalized, meaning that the middle of the tongue is bowed and raised towards the hard palate.
Its phonation is voiceless, which means it is produced without vibrations of the vocal cords. In some languages the vocal cords are actively separated, so it is always voiceless; in others the cords are lax, so that it may take on the voicing of adjacent sounds.
It is an oral consonant, which means air is allowed to escape through the mouth only.
It is a central consonant, which means it is produced by directing the airstream along the center of the tongue, rather than to the sides.
Contrasts with aspirated form. Pronounced by some speakers as a palatalized dental. In complementary distribution with [t͡s], [k], and [ʈ͡ʂ] series. See Standard Chinese phonology
Allophone of /t/ before /i, ĩ/ (including when [i, ĩ, j] is not actually produced) and other instances of [i] (e.g. epenthesis), marginal sound otherwise. Argued both to be laminal[tʃ],[5] and generally produced "in the middle of the hard palate",[4] same of fellow alveolo-palatal [l̠ʲ] and [n̠ʲ],[6] and further palatalized than Italian post-alveolars.[7] See Portuguese phonology
Tingsabadh, M.R. Kalaya; Abramson, Arthur S. (1993), "Thai", Journal of the International Phonetic Association23 (1): 24–26, doi:10.1017/S0025100300004746
Wheeler, Max W. (2005), The Phonology of Catalan, Oxford: Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-925814-7