Characteristics of Via-Hole Interconnections Fabricated by Using an Inkjet Printing Method

Inkjet printing is a familiar technique that creates and releases droplets of fluid on demand and precisely deposits those droplets on a substrate. It has received increased attention for its novelty and ability to produce patterned and template material structures. In the application of electronic interconnection fabrication, drop-on-demand inkjet printers especially offer the advantages of contactless printing and eliminat the use of a die or photomask. In this study, we created a via-hole interconnecting structure through a polymer insulator layer by using an inkjet printing. When the droplets of Ag ink were dropped onto a PMMA/Au/Cr/SiO2/Si area and the Ag film was annealed at high temperatures, the Ag ink containing solvents penetrated into the PMMA layer and generated the conducting paths between the top Ag and the bottom Au electrodes by partial dissolution and swelling of the polymer. The surface and the cross-sectional topologies of the formed via-holes were investigated by using an optical microscope and a field emission transmission electron microscope. Inkjet printing is a familiar technique that creates and releases droplets of fluid on demand and precisely deposits those droplets on a substrate. It has received increased attention for its novelty and ability to produce patterned and template material structures. In the application of electronic interconnection fabrication, drop-on-demand inkjet printers especially offer the advantages of contactless printing and eliminat the use of a die or photomask. In this study, we created a via-hole interconnecting structure through a polymer insulator layer by using an inkjet printing. When the droplets of Ag ink were dropped onto a PMMA/Au/Cr/SiO2/Si area and the Ag film was annealed at high temperatures, the Ag ink containing solvents penetrated into the PMMA layer and generated the conducting paths between the top Ag and the bottom Au electrodes by partial dissolution and swelling of the polymer. The surface and the cross-sectional topologies of the formed via-holes were investigated by using an optical microscope and a field emission transmission electron microscope. KCI Citation Count: 5