Characterization of copper conductive ink for low temperature sintering processing on flexible polymer substrate

Abstract

Printed interconnects on flexible substrates using copper nanoparticles ink is attractive because of its lower material cost, lower electrical resistivity and higher electromigration resistance as compared to gold or silver-based ink. However, Cu nanoparticles oxidize easily during the sintering process, which has an adverse effect on its quality and reliability. Thus, it requires process modifications such as sintering in an inert environment to reduce the oxidation effects. In this paper, the properties of nano-sized Cu particles ink-jet printed conductive films that were sintered in N2 environment are investigated. The sheet resistance and microstructure of the Cu films were monitored as a function of temperature.

Characterisation of Copper Nanoparticle Ink Printed FSS for Cellular Signals Suppression

“…As a result, a conductive path is formed across the printed pattern. In this study, copper nanoparticle ink is used due to its high electrical conductivity and low cost compared to silver and gold [11][12][13][14]. However, since copper has a high rate of oxidation, the sintering process must be performed in an inert atmosphere [15].…”