JPS59124871A - Liquid jet recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enhance liquid resistance, repeatedly usable property, mechanical shock resistance and resistance to electrochemical reaction, by a method wherein a heating resistor layer constituting an electrothermal converting element is formed of a transition metal silicide. CONSTITUTION:A heat-generating part 8 is constituted of a lower layer 10, the heating resistor layer 11 and an upper layer 12. The heating resistor layer 11 is provided in the form of a thin layer of a transition metal silicide. Examples of the transition metal silicide include vanadium silicide, niobium silicide, niobium silicide-manganese silicide and niobium silicide-rhenium silicide. The content of silicon in the layer 11 is preferably not more than 70atm.%, the thickness of the layer 11 is preferably 1,000Angstrom -1mum, and the thus produced layer is preferably subjected to a treatment by applying an electric current.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] The present invention is a discharge port! A liquid jet recording device that performs recording using flying droplets formed by ejecting liquid;
In particular, the present invention relates to a liquid jet recording device that utilizes thermal energy.

There are various types of liquid jet recording devices, among which, for example, OLS No. 2843064,
The liquid jet recording apparatus of the type disclosed in US Pat. No. 2,944,005 and US Pat. Because the ejection openings (orifices) for forming flying droplets can be arranged at high density, it is possible to obtain high resolution, and at the same time, the overall size of the recording head can be made more compact, and it is easier to mass produce. Recently, there has been an increase in the number of products that have become available in large quantities due to the fact that they can be easily made into long products by making full use of the advantages of IC technology and micro-processing technology, which have seen remarkable technological progress and improved reliability in the semiconductor field. It is attracting a lot of attention.

The characteristic recording head of the above-mentioned liquid jet recording apparatus is provided with an electrothermal transducer as means for generating thermal energy for ejecting liquid from an oriice to form flying droplets.

The electrothermal converter is installed in an orifice so as to be in direct contact with the liquid in order to efficiently apply the generated thermal energy to the liquid and increase the ON-FF response speed of the thermal effect on the liquid. It is said that it is desirable to have a structure in which the heat-acting parts are connected to each other.

Heigo et al. said that the electrothermal converter is basically composed of a heating resistor that generates heat when energized, and a pair of electrodes for supplying current to the heating resistor. If the recording liquid is in direct contact with the liquid, depending on the electrical resistance of the recording liquid, electricity may flow through the liquid, the liquid itself may be decomposed due to the flow of electricity through the liquid, or the heating resistance may When electricity is applied to the body, the heating resistor and the liquid react, causing a change in resistance value due to corrosion of the heating resistor itself, and even damage or destruction of the heating resistor. The surface of the heat-generating resistor may be damaged or a portion of the heat-generating resistor may crack due to mechanical shock due to a sudden change in the state of the liquid, preferably including the generation of vapor bubbles, due to the thermal action generated. It may also be destroyed.

For this reason, in the past, NiC! Alloys such as r and Zr
The heating resistor is made of an inorganic material that has relatively excellent properties as a heating resistor material, such as metal borides such as B, HfB, etc., and Si is placed on the heating resistor made of the core material.
By providing a protective layer (upper layer) made of a material with excellent oxidation resistance such as O, the heating resistor is prevented from coming into direct contact with the liquid, and the above problems are solved. It has been proposed to try to improve reliability and durability over repeated use.

In a liquid jet recording device having a recording head equipped with an electrothermal converter having the above-mentioned configuration, a liquid with relatively low electrical conductivity (for example, distilled water as a liquid medium) is used as a colored liquid for recording. When using a material containing alcohol or alcohol, it has excellent oxidation resistance and is satisfactory in terms of durability for repeated use, but it has a high content of Na ions, etc. When a large recording liquid or electrolyte liquid is used, the durability against repeated use and the resistance to change over time are insufficient.

Therefore, there are restrictions on the selection of the recording liquid to be used, which poses an obstacle, especially when performing multicolor or natural color recording.

Furthermore, even in the case where a protective layer is provided on the heating resistor as described above, it is possible to substantially prevent liquid from penetrating in the direction of the heating resistor 11111 through the protective layer due to defects in the protective layer itself that occur during layer formation, for example. It is extremely difficult to completely prevent this from the standpoint of reproducibility and mass production. In addition, in the case of so-called high-density multi-orifice construction, in which liquid channels (nozzles) are provided with a large number of heat-acting parts at high density, it is necessary to use at least as many electrothermal converters as there are liquid channels. Since it is necessary to provide the protective layer all at once, the impact of failure due to defects in the previous protective layer on the manufacturing yield of the electrothermal converter is a major problem, including the manufacturing cost.

Therefore, even if there is no protective layer and the heat-generating resistor is in direct contact with the recording liquid, it can be used as a lightning bolt with excellent liquid resistance, repeatability of use, mechanical shock resistance, and electrochemical reaction resistance. There is a strong desire to develop a liquid jet recording device equipped with a mature heat converter.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned points, and its main object is to provide an excellent liquid jet recording apparatus that solves all of the conventional problems mentioned above.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a liquid jet recording device that is excellent in liquid resistance, mechanical shock resistance, usability after drying, and electrochemical reaction resistance.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a liquid jet recording device which has excellent adhesion with the cavity retaining layer even when one to two protective layers are provided for the purpose of further improving repeatability of use. It is also about providing.

The liquid jet recording device 7t of the present invention ejects liquid.

an ejection opening provided for forming flying droplets; a heat acting part communicating with the ejection opening (orifice) and serving as a place where thermal energy acts on the liquid for forming flying droplets; and an electrothermal converter as a means for generating the thermal energy, and a heat generating resistance layer constituting the electrothermal converter.

It is characterized by being composed of transition metal carbide.

The liquid jet recording device of the present invention configured as described above has the following features:
It has excellent repeatability, liquid resistance, fidelity and reliability of response to recording signals, and can record high-resolution, high-quality images at high speed.

Furthermore, when the electrothermal transducer is configured so that the heating resistor is in direct contact with the recording liquid, the thermal energy generated by the heating resistor effectively acts on the recording liquid, so that the electric The drive voltage threshold for driving the heat converter is low,
In addition, the actual driving voltage for stably forming flying droplets is low, making it easy to save energy.

Furthermore, since there is a wide range of recording liquids to choose from, it is possible to easily perform color recording in desired multi-colors and natural colors.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be explained in more detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1(al) is a partial front view of the main part of the liquid jet recording device of the present invention as seen from the orifice side, FIG. 1(1)l is
FIG. 1 is a partial cross-sectional view taken along a line indicated by a dashed line XY.

The liquid jet recording device 1 shown in the figure has a predetermined number of grooves having a predetermined width and depth at a predetermined linear density on the surface of a substrate 3 on which an electrothermal transducer 2 is provided. It has a structure in which an orifice 5 and a liquid discharge part 6 are formed by joining the grooved plate 4 so as to cover it. In the case of the liquid jet recording device 1 shown in the figure, it is shown as having a plurality of orifices 5, but of course the present invention is not limited to this. The application of this invention also falls within the scope of the present invention.

The liquid discharge part 6 has an orifice 5 at its end for discharging the liquid to form flying droplets, and an orifice 5 for discharging liquid to form flying droplets, and for generating vapor bubbles when the thermal energy generated by the electrothermal converter 2 acts on the liquid. , and has a heat acting part 7 which causes a rapid state change due to expansion and contraction of its volume.

The heat acting part 7 is placed above the heat generating part 8 of the electrothermal converter 2, and has a heat acting surface 9 that comes into contact with the liquid of the heat generating part 8 as its bottom surface.

The heat generating section 8 includes a lower layer 10 provided on the substrate 3 and a heat generating resistor layer (heat generating resistor) 11 provided on the lower layer 10.
, and an upper layer 12 provided on the heating resistance layer 11 as necessary. The heating resistor layer 11 is provided with electrodes 13, 1'4 on its surface for supplying electricity to the layer 11 in order to generate heat. The electrode 13 is an electrode common to the heat generating section of each liquid discharging section, and the electrode 14 is a selection electrode for selectively generating heat in the heat generating section of each liquid discharging section. It is provided along the flow path.

The upper layer 12 isolates the heat generating resistor layer 11 from the liquid in the liquid discharge part B in order to chemically and physically protect the heat generating resistor layer 11 from the liquid used, and also connects the electrode 1 through the liquid.
The heating resistor layer 11 has a protective function of preventing a short circuit between 3 and 14.

The upper layer 12 has the above-mentioned functions, but
The heat generating resistance layer 11 in the liquid jet recording device of the present invention is
Since it has the above-mentioned characteristics, it is not necessarily necessary to provide it if there is no risk of an electrical short circuit between the electrodes 15 and 14 through the liquid, and even if there is the above-mentioned concern. , on the heating resistor layer 11 (C) need not be provided, and the above-mentioned concerns can be completely eliminated by simply covering the surfaces of the electrodes 13 and 14.

The lower layer 10 mainly has a heat flow control function.

That is, when forming flying droplets, the proportion of heat generated in the heat generating resistor layer 11 being conducted toward the heat acting part 7 side is as high as possible than being conducted toward the substrate 3 side, and the flying droplets are After the droplets are formed and the power to the clogging heat generating resistor layer 11 is turned off, the heat in the heat acting section 7 and the heat generating section 8 is quickly transferred to the substrate 6.
It is provided to rapidly cool the liquid and generated air bubbles in the heat acting part 7 by being discharged to the side.

By designing the lower layer 10 such that it can fully exhibit the various functions described above in relation to the heat generating resistor layer 11 and the substrate 6, the liquid jet recording device of the present invention becomes even more excellent.

That is, when forming flying droplets,
The rate of heat flow is as large as possible, and when the electricity to the heating resistor layer 11 is 0FIII', the rate of heat flow to the substrate 3 side is made as large as possible to reduce the droplet ejection energy. Improved efficiency, high thermal response, and continuous repeatable droplet ejection, improved droplet formation frequency, uniform droplet volume, stabilized droplet flight direction, and uniform initial droplet flight speed. This makes it possible to more effectively improve the fidelity and reliability of responses to recording signals.

The heating resistance layer 11 in the night body injection recording device of the present invention is as follows:
As described above, it is provided as a thin layer of transition metal silicide.

Effective 4s to provide transition metal silicide in the present invention
As metals, metals belonging to the fourth period of the periodic table, that is,
Ti (titanium), V (vanadium), Or (chromium)
, Mn (manganese), Fθ (iron), Co (cobalt), metals belonging to the fifth period of the periodic table, such as Zn (zirconium), Nb (niobium)
, MO (molybdenum), Ru (ruthenium) 1 Metals belonging to the 6th period of the periodic table, such as Ta (tantalum),
Preferred examples include W (tungsten) and Ra (rhenium).

The transition metal silicide constituting the heating resistance layer in the present invention is not limited to one type, and two or more types may be used to form a layer in order to obtain the desired characteristics to the maximum. That is, the heating resistance layer may be constructed using a silicide containing at least one of the transition metal elements described above.

Examples of particularly preferably used transition metal silicides in the present invention include vanadium silicide (e.g. VSi), niobium silicide (e.g. NbSi),
Tantalum silicide (e.g. Taxi), chromium silicide (e.g. CrSi), molybdenum silicide (e.g. Mo
Eli□), tungsten silicide (WSi2), )r
Pd2Si 7jh is mentioned. Examples of two or more metal silicides include niobium silicide-manganese silicide, niobium silicide-rhenium silicide, niobium silicide-nickel silicide, and the like.

In the present invention, the silicon content contained in the heat generating resistor layer depends on the type of mating metal, the content ratio of the mating metals when there is a plurality of mating metals, etc. The silicon content contained in the heat generating resistor layer is determined as desired in order to obtain the desired result, but from the viewpoint of chemical stability, the silicon content in the heat generating resistor layer is 70 atoms (hereinafter referred to as f&rat, 4J) with respect to all atoms in the layer. (abbreviated as) below is suitable, and furthermore, from the stability of specific resistance, 15at, % or more 68at
, preferably less than the width.

In the present invention, the layer thickness of the heating resistor layer is determined based on the characteristics, types, and content of the constituent materials, as well as the flying droplet formation characteristics required for the device itself, so that appropriate thermal energy can be effectively generated. It can be determined as appropriate, but preferably 10oA to 5
It is approximately μ, and optimally 1000 A to 1 μ is desirable.

When the silicon content is as low as 43 a't.% or less, it is desirable that the layer thickness be 3000A to 3μ, and it is further desirable that the formed layer be subjected to an a' treatment.

In the present invention, the heating resistance layer made of transition metal silicide has a predetermined composition ratio, for example, N1)SiX(x = O
, + to 2.0) is preferably prepared by hot pressing and then formed by sputtering.

Next, a summary of the manufacturing method and form of the liquid jet recording apparatus manufactured in the Examples or Comparative Examples of the present invention to be described hereinafter will be explained in detail.

First, electrothermal converter installation boards corresponding to the following Examples and Comparative Examples were created in the following manner.

Lower layer (Sin,) of the glass substrate 3 that also serves as the lower layer 10
After forming the heating resistor layer 11 and the aluminum electrode layer on the heating resistor layer 10, selective etching is performed to form the heating resistor layers 11-1 to 11-3 with a thickness of 40 μm and a length of 200 μm, for example.
was formed. Further, the selection electrode 14 and the common electrode 13 were formed by etching. Furthermore, a protective layer (upper layer) 12 was laminated on the surface of each electrode and each heating resistance layer according to the need for safety, thereby forming an electrothermal transducer on the substrate 6.

Apart from these, there is also a grooved electrode, which is formed by cutting a glass plate with a plurality of grooves (for example, width 40 μm, depth 40 μm) and a groove serving as a common ink chamber (not shown) using a micro cutter. Plate 4 was also created.

The electrothermal converter installation board and the grooved scattering plate created in this way are joined on top to align the electrothermal converter and the grooves, and then the ink supply section (not shown) is connected to the common ink chamber. An ink introduction pipe (not shown) for introducing liquid ink was also connected to complete the recording device.

Fourth, this recording device was equipped with an IJ-board having lead electrodes (a common lead electrode and a selective lead electrode) connected to the aforementioned selective camellia and common front electrode.

In the liquid jet recording apparatus having the above configuration, the upper layer 12 includes 5olo21. In the case where thin layers of Op layer thickness, Ta2O layer thickness, and 0.5 It layer thickness were laminated on each heating resistor layer 11, a driving voltage margin of 1.5 to 1.9 times the foaming threshold voltage was obtained. This shows that heat resistance is further improved by providing the upper layer 12 compared to a system in which the heating resistance layer 11 is exposed to liquid.

At this time, the system without the upper layer 12 has a driving voltage margin of about 1.3 times the foaming threshold voltage, which is shown to be superior to the conventional system.

A similar evaluation was performed using a silicon wafer as the substrate 3 in addition to the above-mentioned glass substrate, and as the upper layer 10 a 2-5 μm SiO layer formed by heat-treating the surface of the silicon wafer. However, similar good results were obtained.

Further, as the substrate 6, in addition to those used in the embodiments, alumina, ceramics, heat-resistant plastics, etc. can also be used.

In addition to At, the electrode materials include At-0u and Az-8.
i, etc. can be used, but when using these materials, in order to isolate the electrode and the liquid, for example, a coating made of hardened photosensitive heat-resistant resin is used, excluding the heat-active surface. It is preferred to cover the electrode and the area around the electrode.

Example A liquid jet recording device having the configuration described above (sample hazy 0
-1 to 1O-1) (number of liquid channels 21.00° - one electrothermal converter per liquid channel), -1K10 per aether heat converter
Reliability was measured by counting the number of failed electrothermal transducers during 8 pulse drives. The results are shown in Table 1 below.
Shown below. Table 2 shows the results based on silicon content.

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[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 (al is a partial front view from one orifice side of a preferred embodiment of a liquid jet recording head to which the present invention is applied, FIG. 1 (1) l is a point in FIG. 1 (a) Chain line XY
FIG. 2 is a partial cross-sectional view taken at a portion shown in FIG. 1...Liquid jet recording device 2...Electrothermal converter 3...Substrate 4...Grooved plate 5...Orifice 6...Liquid Discharge part 7... Heat acting part 8... Heat generating part 9... Heat acting surface 10... Lower layer 11... Heat generating resistance layer 12... ...Top layer 13...Common electrode 14...Selection electrode. Man 1 school (shi)

Claims (1)

[Claims] (1) An ejection port provided for ejecting liquid to form flying droplets, and a place communicating with the ejection port where thermal energy acts on the liquid to form flying droplets. and an electrothermal f tower as a means for generating the thermal energy, wherein the heat generating resistance layer constituting the electrothermal converter is made of a transition metal silicide. Recording device.