Laser curing of screen and inkjet printed conductors on flexible substrates

Copper nanoparticle (NP) inks offer lower cost conductors compared with the more common silver conductors used for flexible electronics applications. However, oxidation occurs during conventional oven-curing limiting their use. This paper reports screen/inkjet printed copper conductors, cured using a laser, on flexible Kapton (Polyimide), PET (Polyethylene terephthalate), paper and polyester/cotton fabric in ambient air. The results show that copper NP inks can be laser sintered without oxidation or damage to these flexible substrates.