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Titanium hydride nanoparticles and nanoinks for aerosol jet printed electronics
Ethan B Secor1,2, Nelson S Bell1, Monica Presiliana Romero1
1Sandia National Laboratories, Advanced Materials Laboratory, 1001 University Boulevard, SE, Albuquerque, NM 87106, USA. tjboyle@sandia.gov.
Nanoscale
|August 19, 2022
Summary
Researchers developed air-stable titanium hydride (TiH2) nanoinks for printed electronics. This breakthrough enables conductive patterns using a more stable material, expanding possibilities for electronic device fabrication.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Nanotechnology
- Electronics Engineering
Background:
- Conductive inks typically use oxidation-resistant metals like gold, silver, copper, and nickel.
- The need for air stability in metallic nanoparticles limits the achievable material properties in printed electronics.
- Developing alternative air-stable materials is crucial for advancing printed electronic devices.
Purpose of the Study:
- To introduce an alternative approach for conductive inks using air-stable nanoscale metal hydrides.
- To demonstrate the feasibility of using titanium hydride (TiH2) nanoinks for printed electronics.
- To explore the properties and processing of TiH2 nanoinks for potential applications.
Main Methods:
- Titanium hydride (TiH2) nanoparticles (<100 nm platelets) were synthesized by heating TiH2 powder in octylamine and subsequent wet ball milling.
- Stable colloidal dispersions of TiH2 nanoinks were created by incorporating a polymer dispersant during ball milling.
- Aerosol jet printing was employed to deposit TiH2 nanoinks onto glass and polyimide substrates, followed by intense pulsed light (IPL) curing.
Main Results:
- Conductive patterns were successfully printed on polyimide under ambient atmosphere using TiH2 nanoinks.
- Aerosol jet printing achieved fine resolutions down to 20 μm on both glass and polyimide.
- Intense pulsed light curing resulted in a sintered, porous morphology on polyimide substrates.
- The printed TiH2 patterns exhibited an electrical sheet resistance of approximately 150 Ω □⁻¹.
Conclusions:
- Air-stable nanoscale titanium hydride (TiH2) presents a viable alternative to traditional metallic nanoparticles for conductive inks.
- The developed TiH2 nanoinks are suitable for liquid-phase processing and aerosol jet printing.
- Intense pulsed light curing enables the fabrication of conductive patterns with promising electrical properties, opening new avenues for printed electronics.
