Abstract

This study explores the effectiveness of pad printing and near-infrared (NIR) sintering for producing conductive silver microparticle traces. A new pad printer was set up, and silver inks with varying concentrations of silver particles (17.5 %v/v, 20 %v/v, and 25 %v/v) were manufactured, printed, and sintered. The study identified sintering time and silver concentration as the most influential parameters affecting resistivity, with the best result of 8.73 × 10⁻⁷ Ω·m achieved using 25 %v/v ink sintered for 3 seconds at full power. Although resistivity continued to decrease at this maximum sintering duration, further optimization of parameters, including NIR bulb distance and sintering conditions, is necessary to fully leverage the benefits of this technique. Additionally, feature size showed a minimal impact on resistivity, suggesting it may not play a significant role. However, further experiments are needed to validate these findings and explore the effects of line thickness on sintering efficiency. Future work should also investigate extended sintering durations, enhanced energy absorption, and finer layer increments to further reduce resistivity and improve consistency. These advancements could pave the way for scalable and efficient applications in printed electronics.

Degree

MS

College and Department

Ira A. Fulton College of Engineering; Manufacturing Engineering

Rights

https://lib.byu.edu/about/copyright/

Date Submitted

2025-04-25

Document Type

Thesis

Keywords

pad printing, silver micro-particle ink, NIR sintering, 4-point probe, Ag ink, resistivity, printed electronics, feature size

Language

english

Download

Included in

Engineering Commons

Share

COinS