Synthesis of carbon-based Ag-Pd bimetallic nanocomposite and the application in electroless copper deposition

Abstract

In this paper, carbon dots (C-dots) based AgPd/C nanocomposite (AgPd/C NCs) was synthesized and firstly applied as the catalyst in the electroless copper deposition. The hydroxyl-rich C-dots synthesized by one-pot electrochemical carbonization method can reduce Ag+ into Ag nanoparticles to form Ag/carbon nanocomposites (Ag/C NCs), which were then utilized as the template to synthesize AgPd/C NCs that have palladium-rich surface and silver-rich core. The results show that AgPd/C NCs can act as the activator and be used in electroless copper deposition of printed circuit boards (PCBs) with the backlight coefficient of 9.5 with the palladium concentration as low as 7 ppm. The speed in the deposition of copper and the stability of the catalyst are better than those of the traditional Sn/Pd colloidal activator at the same concentration, which promises the AgPd/C NCs good substitutes in electroless copper deposition in the future.