Direct metallisation of polyetherimide substrates by activation with different metals

Abstract

This article reports the performance of different metallic ions and nanoparticles (Ag, Cu, Ni, Pd, Cr, Co, Au and Fe) used as seed layers, formed by chemical or optical reduction, for the electroless Cu plating of metal tracks onto polyetherimide (PEI). Plated Cu performance was tested by adhesion, electrical conductivity, plating rate, XPS, SEM, XRD and EDX analysis. The application of Cu and Ag seeds resulted in high quality electroless Cu deposits presenting strong adhesion properties and high conductivity ((2.0 ± 0.5) ×10 7 S/m and (3.6 ± 0.2) ×10 7 S/m, respectively) compared with bulk copper (5.96 ×10 7 S/m). Performance is attributed to the high surface density and uniformity of seed layers. Of the metals, only Ag ions were photoreduced under the conditions applied and were subsequently used to electroless Cu plate high quality track features of 150 µm width. The application of sulphuric acid pre-treatment to PEI prior to Ag ion exchange, improved the photoinitiated track formation process, as demonstrated by a threefold increase to both photoinduced Ag nanoparticle density on the surface and electroless Cu plating rate, as well as improved electroless Cu adhesion to PEI.

Selective Electroless Copper Deposition by Using Photolithographic Polymer/Ag Nanocomposite

“…The resistance of the interconnections could be affected by the nonuniformity of the copper thicknesses of the formed interconnections (0.59 ± 0.06) μm and pads (0.87 ± 0.07) μm. The growth of the electroless copper depends on the catalytic activity of the seeds [29]. Evaporated copper consists of closely packed nanocrystallites, which are distributed uniformly on the substrate [30], [31].…”

“…A high coverage of the surface and a reduction in seed size provides a larger surface area enabling faster plating rates as there is less incorporation of hydrogen bubbles influencing copper ductility [29]. Therefore, the plating rates for electroless copper onto evaporated copper are faster than on the polymer/Ag nanocomposites, as Ag seeds in the polymer are rather widely distributed in the polymer matrix which makes the plating rate slower [29]. Therefore, electroless copper plated onto evaporated copper metal results in a thicker copper layer than plated onto polymer/Ag nanocomposite.…”

Influence of Cr Ion Bombardment on the Growth of Cu Coatings Deposited by Magnetron Sputtering on ABS Substrates

“…For example, polymer surfaces with metal layers can be used as surface decorations. This provides an opportunity to replace metal material by using lightweight polymer materials, consequently saving costs in terms of energy and transportation [ 2 ]. Printed circuit boards are manufactured from copper-coated polymers by removing an unwanted part of the surface metal layer; a smooth copper layer firmly combined with a polymer substrate is one of the key processes for the application [ 3 ].…”

Pervaporation dehydration of bio-fuel (n-butanol) by dry thermal treatment membrane

“…Graphene has received wide attention by the researchers' because of its derivative graphene oxide (GO). GO enhances the permeation factor of PEI polymer due to hydrophilic properties of the filler [22][23][24][25][26] like the presence of rich oxygen groups such as hydroxyl, carboxyl, carbonyl and epoxide groups. These rich oxygen groups exhibit polar properties [27,28].…”