Printing of silver conductive lines through laser-induced forward transfer

The generation of conductive lines from liquid inks through laser-induced forward transfer (LIFT) is achieved by printing a sequence of overlapping droplets. This procedure, however, is not free from drawbacks: the formation of continuous lines is often accompanied with undesired scalloping or bulging. In this work we present an innovative method consisting in the deposition of conductive ink through LIFT inside fluidic guides produced by laser ablation. The aim of the approach is that the guides confine the liquid within them so that the most common defects can be prevented. The production of guides through laser ablation followed by LIFT of ink inside them has proved that it is possible to find conditions in which the total confinement of liquid within the guides is achieved with good uniformity all along the line. This proves the feasibility of the proposed approach for printing continuous lines free from scalloping and bulging with excellent definition.