Abstract
With the help of photonic sintering using intensive pulse light (IPL), copper has started to replace silver as a printable conductive material for printing electrodes in electronic circuits. However, to sinter copper ink, high energy IPL has to be used, which often causes electrode destruction, due to unreleased stress concentration and massive heat generated. In this study, a Cu/Sn hybrid ink has been developed by mixing Cu and Sn particles. The hybrid ink requires lower sintering energy than normal copper ink and has been successfully employed in a hybrid printing process to make metal-mesh transparent conductive films (TCFs). The sintering energy of Cu/Sn hybrid films with the mass ratio of 2:1 and 1:1 (Cu:Sn) were decreased by 21% compared to sintering pure Cu film, which is attributed to the lower melting point of Sn for hybrid ink. Detailed study showed that the Sn particles were effectively fused among Cu particles and formed conducting path between them. The hybrid printed Cu/Sn metal-mesh TCF with line width of 3.5 μm, high transmittance of 84% and low sheet resistance of 14 Ω/□ have been achieved with less defects and better quality than printed pure copper metal-mesh TCFs.
Highlights
Conductive ink based on silver nanoparticle is widely used in printed electronics[9,10], albeit at high cost[11]
A Cu/Sn hybrid ink has been developed by mixing Cu and Sn particles
The sintered energy of Cu/Sn film with mass ratio of 2:1 (Cu:Sn) was found 21% less than that for Cu film, which is attributed to the lower melting point of Sn for hybrid ink
Summary
Conductive ink based on silver nanoparticle is widely used in printed electronics[9,10], albeit at high cost[11]. Among the many reported techniques, the authors’ group developed a hybrid printing process which prints conductive ink into a narrow trench instead of conventionally on surface (The hybrid printing process is shown in Supplementary Fig. S1). In this innovative process, less than 3 μm grid width can be achieved and the embedded Ag metal-mesh TCF has extremely low sheet resistance (85%)[21]. Using the Cu/Sn ink and previously developed Cu ink at the authors’ group for comparison, metal-mesh TCFs were fabricated by the hybrid printing process and sintered with an IPL. The Cu/Sn metal-mesh TCF achieved the transmittance of 84% and low sheet resistance of 14 Ω/□ with less defects and better quality than printed pure copper metal-mesh TCFs
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
