In-situ observation of silver nanoparticle ink at high temperature

In-situ TEM (transmission electron microscopy) of silver nanoparticle ink at high temperature was carried out. Into a carbon film tube coating the spiral tungsten filament which was attached to the TEM specimen holder, a silver nanoparticle ink was injected. After evaporation, silver nanoparticles with an aggregated structure could be observed. The temperature of the tungsten wire can be controlled by DC current supplied by dry batteries. Fusion of smaller nanoparticles was observed at a higher temperature and some particles were incorporated to larger particles. This technique can be generally used to consider the sintering temperature of such metal nanoparticles.