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has been cited by the following article:

• TITLE: The Effect of Laser Sintering Process Parameters on Cu Nanoparticle Ink in Room Conditions

  AUTHORS: Eerik Halonen, Esa Heinonen, Matti Mäntysalo

  KEYWORDS: Nanoparticles; Electrical Properties; Laser Processing; Microstructure; Sintering; Thin Films

  JOURNAL NAME: Optics and Photonics Journal, Vol.3 No.4A, August 9, 2013

  ABSTRACT: Copper is an interesting material for printed electronics inks because, for example, of its good conductivity and lower raw material price compared to silver. However, post-processing Cu inks is challenging because of non-conductive copper oxide. In this work, inkjet-printed Cu nanoparticle structures were sintered on a polyimide substrate with a continuous-wave 808-nm diode laser. Laser sintering was tested by varying the sintering parameters (optical power and scanning velocity), and the electrical resistance of the samples was measured. A minimum sheet resistance of approx.90 mΩ/□ was obtained. All tests were run in room conditions. Sintered structures were then analyzed from SEM images. Results showed that laser sintering produces good repeatability, that a scanning velocity increment positively affects the process window, and that multiple sintering cycles do not increase conductivity.