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A Low-Temperature Printing Technology for Fabricating Electrically Conductive Structures and Devices Using Plasma-Activated Stabilizer-Free Inks

Sui, Yongkun
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=case1562589709669126

Abstract Details

2019, Doctor of Philosophy, Case Western Reserve University, EECS - Electrical Engineering.
Inkjet printing is rapidly emerging as a means to fabricate low cost electronic devices; however, widespread adoption is hindered because the technology is currently limited to a few metals and substrates due to the complexity of the inks and the relatively high processing temperatures associated with post-deposition sintering. In this dissertation, a new approach for inkjet printing based on off-the-shelf, particle-free inks formulated from inorganic metal salts and their subsequent low-temperature conversion to metallic structures by a non-equilibrium, inert gas plasma is described. This single, general method is demonstrated for a library of metals including gold (Au), silver (Ag), copper (Cu), palladium (Pd), platinum (Pt), lead (Pb), bismuth (Bi), and tin (Sn). These metals were printed and plasma activated at substrate temperatures between 77°C and 138°C, depending on their reduction potential. This low activation temperature enables printing on substrate materials with low glass transition temperatures, such as polyethylene (PE), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyethylene naphthalate (PEN), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), and polycarbonate (PC) to name a few. The resistivities of the inkjet-printed and converted metals were measured to be between 2X and 10X of the respective bulk metals. Uniquely, the metal films were found to exhibit a very large surface area because of the plasma-initiated nucleation and growth process, making the printing technique attractive for sensor device applications. To demonstrate the utility of the printing technique developed in this dissertation, a number of sensors including a Bi-based trace Pb ion sensor, a Au-based amyloid-β sensor, a Au-based strain gauge, and a Ag-based thermistor were fabricated as representative chemical, biological, mechanical, and thermal sensors. Due to the large effective surface area and low resistivity of the printed metals, the inkjet-printed sensors exhibit enhanced sensitivity compared to analogues made by conventional methods. In addition to metallic conductive materials, the low-temperature plasma activation method can also be applied to printing nonmetallic, conductive materials such as reduced graphene oxide (RGO). Electrically conductive, mechanically flexible, and chemically reactive RGO was produced with characteristics comparable to RGO produced by thermal and electrochemical reduction. A hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) sensor was fabricated to show the application of printed RGO.
Christian Zorman (Committee Chair)
R. Mohan Sankaran (Committee Co-Chair)
Chung-Chiun Liu (Committee Member)
Mandal Soumyajit (Committee Member)
164 p.
Chemical Engineering; Electrical Engineering; Plasma Physics
Inkjet printing; Conductive materials; print metals; print RGO; inorganic metal salt based inks

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Sui, Y. (2019). A Low-Temperature Printing Technology for Fabricating Electrically Conductive Structures and Devices Using Plasma-Activated Stabilizer-Free Inks [Doctoral dissertation, Case Western Reserve University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=case1562589709669126

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Sui, Yongkun. A Low-Temperature Printing Technology for Fabricating Electrically Conductive Structures and Devices Using Plasma-Activated Stabilizer-Free Inks. 2019. Case Western Reserve University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=case1562589709669126.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Sui, Yongkun. "A Low-Temperature Printing Technology for Fabricating Electrically Conductive Structures and Devices Using Plasma-Activated Stabilizer-Free Inks." Doctoral dissertation, Case Western Reserve University, 2019. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=case1562589709669126

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

case1562589709669126
408
© 2019, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by Case Western Reserve University School of Graduate Studies and OhioLINK.