AlN ceramic is the potential substrate for high-performance printed circuit board with the rapid development of electronic industry due to the superior thermal and electrical property, while its metallization still faces the issues of thermal stress and weak interface bonding with existing technology. Herein, a convenient design is proposed to achieve the Cu deposition on the surface of AlN substrate, the TiO2 containing photocatalytic intermediate layer is prefabricated on AlN substrate with silica and titania mixed sol, and induces the autocatalytic deposition of electroless copper plating under ultraviolet irradiation. Compared with Cu deposition with Pd activation treatment, the bonding strength between Cu layer and AlN substrate is significantly enhanced with the intermediate layer, this is ascribed to the formed nano-porous microstructure of the sintered intermediate layer facilitating the penetration of plating bath, and the mechanical anchoring effect derived from the interlocking microstructure between Cu layer and intermediate layer contributes to the improved bonding strength. This new method realizes the metallization of AlN ceramic with high interfacial bonding strength and low cost compared with the traditional joining technology, and provides a potential reference for the surface metallization of inert material.
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