2010 R&D 100 Winner
Conductive inks are currently limited by a number of problems, including cost (from the use of silver or gold) and instability of cheaper alternatives. Copper, for example, is prone to oxidation, especially in nanoparticle form.
NovaCentrix, Austin, Texas, addresses these two problems with Metalon ICI, a low-cost CuO-based ink for printed electronics applications that converts to highly electrically-conductive Cu thin-film after printing and post-processing. Based on the use of copper oxide nanoparticles suspended in water, along with a very mild reducing agent/acid, the ink, when printed, is processed in open air with a PulseForge, a thermal processing tool that was a 2009 R&D 100 Award winner.
The ink absorbs microsecond pulsed light energy from the tool and uses that energy to drive a reduction reaction, converting the copper oxide into true copper. The resulting copper nanoparticles are sintered into a thin, highly-conductive meso-porous copper film that is well suited for use in common inkjet printers.
Technology
Metallic ink
Developers
NovaCentrix
Development Team
|
| Front row: (l-r) Ron Sommers, Scott Durham, Stan Farnsworth, Jon Preston, Doug Lind, Melissa Devorsky, Ian Rawson, Ron Dass, Doug Jackson, Charlie Munson, Kurt Schroder, Don Martin, Steve Walker. Back row: Alex Rose, Andy Edd, Ted Kierzyk, Paul Zeismer, Dave Pope, Bob Wenz, Rens Ross, Hunter Foreman, Steve McCool |
The Metalon ICI ink Development Team from NovaCentrix
Ron Dass
Melissa Devorsky
Scott Durham
Andy Edd
Stan Farnsworth
Hunter Foreman
Doug Jackson
Ted Kierzyk
Doug Lind,
Don Martin
Karl Martin
Steve McCool
Charlie Munson
David Pope
Jon Preston
Ian Rawson
Alex Rose
Rens Ross
Kurt Schroder
Ron Sommers
Steve Walker
Bob Wenz
Darlene Wentworth
Paul Zeismer
Rick Zumsteg
