Hydrophilicity Control of Ag-Paste Electrodes by UV/Ozone Treatment

Ag-paste is used as an electrode material in various fields as a manufacturing advantage that enables solution processing. However, when a subsequent thin film is formed on the solidified Ag-paste electrode, there is a fear that the bonding force between the Ag-paste electrode and the subsequent thin film is weakened and peeled off due to the low surface energy of the Agpaste electrode. It is necessary to increase the surface energy of the Ag-paste electrode surface since it ultimately directly affects the yield of the device or product. In this study, the UV/ozone treatment process was introduced to increase the Ag-paste surface energy, thereby making the surface hydrophilic. Additionally, it was confirmed that the UV/ozone treatment process affected only the surface of the Ag-paste electrode by extracting the contact resistance.