A benchmark study of commercially available copper nanoparticle inks for application in organic electronic devices

• Three different commercial copper nanoparticle ink formulations for inkjet printing have been tested.
• Printability of the inks was evaluated on the substrates with different surface properties.
• Photonic sintering behaviour of printed structures was investigated.
• Under optimized conditions of printing and sintering high electrical conductivity (20% of the bulk Cu value) was obtained.

A set of three commercial copper nanoparticle based inkjet inks has been benchmarked with respect to their potential to form conducting printed structures for future applications in organic electronic devices. Significant differences were observed in terms of jetting properties, spreading behaviour and line formation on a number of relevant substrates. The inks' stabilities against oxidation were investigated, inkjet printed patterns were subjected to photonic flash sintering and their electrical properties characterized. As a result, optimized conditions for printing and post-deposition processing were determined. Photonic flash sintering, which is a roll-to-roll compatible manufacturing process, allowed a significant reduction in sintering time. Flash sintering was performed in the presence of air, thereby excluding the necessity for processing under inert atmosphere. One product was identified which showed satisfactory performances regarding all tested features: stable jet formation, well-defined definition of the printed structures and high electrical conductivity (20% of the value of bulk Cu). The obtained results can be considered as a promising step towards the future application of Cu inks in organic electronic devices.

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