Substrate-facilitated nanoparticle sintering and component interconnection procedure

Room temperature substrate-facilitated sintering of nanoparticles is demonstrated using commercially available silver nanoparticle ink and inkjet printing substrates. The sintering mechanism is based on the chemical removal of the nanoparticle stabilizing ligand and is shown to provide conductivity above one-fourth that of bulk silver. A novel approach to attach discrete components to printed conductors is presented, where the sintered silver provides the metallic interconnects with good electrical and mechanical properties. A process for printing and chip-on-demand assembly is suggested.