| Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 546929 | Microelectronics Reliability | 2014 | 7 Pages |
•Formation of the clusters by interparticle necking during sintering process.•cluster size in the patterns increased with increasing sintering temperature and time.•Ag films for high sintering temperature and time had good electrical properties.•Ag patterns exposed to higher sintering temperature and time had higher ECM resistances.
In this study, we investigated the phenomena of electrochemical migration (ECM) on a silicon (Si) substrate with directly printed Ag pattern using the screen-printing method. The microstructures and electrical characteristics of the directly printed Ag patterns under different sintering conditions were estimated. In addition, the ECM characteristics of the directly patterned Ag circuits on Si substrates were evaluated according to the sintering conditions. Clusters were formed by interparticle necking during the sintering process; the cluster size in the patterns increased as the sintering temperature and time increased. Granular Ag films, which were sintered at high temperatures and for long time periods of time, had excellent electrical characteristics as a result of the formation of interparticle necking of sufficient size. Also, the directly printed Ag patterns exposed to higher sintering temperatures and longer sintering times had higher resistances to ECM than those exposed to lower sintering temperatures and shorter sintering times.
