KR20000060756A - A ink jet printer head using a piezoelectric materia and a fabricating method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: An ink jet printer head using piezo-electric effect and a method thereof are provided to simplify the structure and the manufacturing process by integrally forming a nozzle and an ink manifold and prevent ink counterflow in case of discharging ink. CONSTITUTION: An ink jet printer head using piezo-electric material includes a nozzle plate and a vibration plate at both sides of a bulk silicon substrate forming a pressure chamber(1a) and a common ink manifold(4a) with having a partition therebetween, wherein piezo-electric plates attached to a nozzle(2a) of the nozzle plate and the outside of the vibration plate, are integrally formed to opposite each other with having the pressure chamber, an ink flow channel formed in the partition wall to flow ink of the common ink manifold into the pressure chamber, and the vibration plate formed with ZrO2 thick film of 8-10 micro meter in thickness.

Description

A ink jet printer head using a piezoelectric materia and a fabricating method

The present invention relates to an ink jet printer head using a piezoelectric material and a manufacturing method thereof.

Conventionally, a thermal bubble jet printer head has been mainly used as a print head. Thermal bubble jet (Cannon & HP basic patent) is a method of ejecting ink by generating bubbles as heat. Instantaneous current flows through the heat conversion film in direct contact with the ink inside the printhead to generate heat due to the intrinsic resistance of the heat conversion film. This heat is transferred to the ink in contact with the heat conversion film so that the water-soluble ink rapidly rises above the boiling point. When the temperature of the ink rises above the boiling point, bubbles are formed, and the formed bubbles apply pressure to the surrounding ink. The pressurized ink is ejected through the nozzle due to the pressure difference from the atmospheric pressure. At this time, the ejected ink is ejected to the ground while forming ink drops to minimize the surface energy inherent in the ink. This process is called drop-on-demand, which uses a computer to operate whenever needed.

At the moment when the bubbles disappear after the bubbles are generated in the thermal bubble jet, the high curvature of the smaller bubbles increases the impact of the bubbles on the protective film on the thermal conversion film, resulting in cavitation damage. Is generated. For this reason, there are many restrictions on extending the life of the print head. In addition, since the ink is ejected only when bubbles are generated, the ink must be boiled at an appropriate temperature, so only ink that can boil at such an appropriate temperature can be used. Due to the physical properties of these inks, there are not many kinds of inks that can be used in thermal bubble jets. The limiting factor in the use of ink results in narrowing the application of the thermal bubble jet itself, such as thermal bubble jets being primarily confined to desktop publications.

In addition, due to the high heat generated when bubbles are generated, the organic additives of the ink tend to react with the protective film located on the heat conversion film and adsorb to the protective film. These adsorbates interfere with heat transfer, so that the heat generated in the heat conversion film is not effectively transferred to the ink. Therefore, even if a sufficient amount of heat to generate bubbles is generated by the heat conversion film, in some cases, the adsorbents formed on the protective film are not sufficiently transferred to the ink, so that the ink cannot be ejected normally.

On the other hand, what has been proposed to solve the above problems is a printer head using a piezoelectric material of the non-heating method. However, ink jet printer heads using piezoelectric materials are generally limited in their use due to the cost increase resulting from complex assembly processes despite the excellent performance due to the assembly process due to the characteristics of piezoelectric materials.

That is, Piezo-electrinc impulse ink-jet is a printing method using a phenomenon that the volume changes when the piezoelectric element receives an electric field momentarily. When the piezoelectric element instantaneously changes its volume, it transmits a pressure wave to the ink, which travels to the nozzle at a speed of sound. Therefore, the nozzle ejects ink by the difference between the delivered pressure and atmospheric pressure. Various design examples using this principle have been published (Ulmann's encyclopedia of industrial chemistry).

First, in the Xaar method, grooves are formed through mechanical processing on piezo-electric plates sintered in a manufacturing process to form flow paths through which ink flows. An electrode, a nozzle plate, a protective film, etc. are additionally formed in the piezoelectric plate in which the flow path was formed, and a printer head is manufactured. Piezoelectric plates are generally manufactured after the separation process and after the sintering process, and are made in the form of irregular aggregates of regular particles. When mechanically processing a piezoelectric plate to form an ink flow path, the amorphous piezoelectric plate irregularly pulls out particles. Particles where the particles are lost become voids in the piezoelectric material, which are theoretically cracked crack centers under low stress. As a result, production yields are significantly lower and production costs rise.

Next, the Epson Push Rod Design method is used in the form of a plurality of rods by mechanically processing a piezoelectric plate composed of multiple layers. Each bar is connected to a diaphragm at the top of the bar, which vibrates as the piezoelectric bar receives an electric field and changes its volume. Such a print head undergoes a considerable number of assembling processes, and even when the assembly is performed, ink droplets are not discharged uniformly unless precise assembly is required, so a high precision assembling process is required. This high precision assembly process increases the cost and also increases the packing density of the nozzle because the rod is mechanically used.

In the Epson Kyser method (patent), the diaphragm and the ink flow path are made of ZrO ₂ . In general, chemical bonds forming ceramic materials are weakly deformable because they are formed by ionic bonding, and must be subjected to a high temperature process because a material having desired physical properties is obtained by heating at a high temperature. Formability is also very weak and difficult to wet etch due to strong ionic bonds. Polycrystalline is usually used because it is difficult to obtain a sufficiently large form with a single crystal. However, in the case of polycrystalline, since the particles are irregularly distributed, it is difficult to perform uniformly when wet etching. Therefore, if the process control is not very precise, it is difficult to realize the uniformity of the printhead, and the precision process is accompanied, so that the production yield is significantly lowered. This approach has the disadvantage of easily increasing production costs due to this low production yield.

1 is a sectional view of a laminated ink jet recording head described in European Patent No. 0 659 562 A2. As shown, the laminated inkjet recording head basically comprises a nozzle plate 101 on which a nozzle 100 is formed, three communicating hole forming boards 201a, 201b, and 201c, and a pressure generating chamber forming board 301. ) And the diaphragm 400 are sequentially laminated (laminated) structure. In the pressure generating chamber 300, the ink stored in the ink storage container 800 is temporarily stored in the storage chamber 600a after passing through the inlet 700, and then filled through the ink inlet 600c and the communication hole 600b. Ink provided from an external ink container flows into the ink storage container 800 through the filter 900. The piezoelectric vibrator 500 is attached to the diaphragm 400 to generate pressure in the ink filled in the pressure generating chamber 300 according to a voltage signal applied thereto. The pressurized ink is discharged through the nozzle 100 through the communicating holes 200a, 200b, and 200c. However, in the inkjet recording head having such a structure, since the nozzle 100 and the ink injection hole 600c are together on the surface facing the diaphragm 400, the discharge pressure of the ink due to the vibration of the diaphragm 400 is divided. This exists. That is, since the pressure through which the ink is discharged through the nozzle 100 is transferred to the ink injection hole 600c, the phenomenon in which the ink injected into the pressure generating chamber 300 flows back easily occurs.

The present invention was devised to improve the above problems, and the structure and the manufacturing process are simplified as much as possible by integrating a nozzle and an ink flow path and directly attaching or forming a piezoelectric material to a diaphragm, and ink backflow during ink ejection. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide an inkjet printer head using a piezoelectric material that prevents the phenomenon as much as possible and a method of manufacturing the same.

1 is a vertical sectional view of a conventional laminated inkjet recording head,

2A and 2B are schematic perspective plan views, respectively, as viewed from the nozzle face of an inkjet printer head using a piezoelectric material according to the present invention;

2A is a perspective plan view of an embodiment using a (100) Si substrate,

2A is a perspective plan view of an embodiment using a (100) Si substrate,

3A and 3B are schematic perspective plan views of the inkjet printer head using the piezoelectric material of FIGS. 2A and 2B respectively viewed from a diaphragm having a piezoelectric plate formed thereon;

4A and 4B are vertical cross-sectional views showing cross sections taken along the line AA ′ of FIGS. 3A and 3B, respectively;

5A to 5O are vertical cross-sectional views showing a cross section after the process step by step of the manufacturing method of the embodiment of the inkjet printer head using the piezoelectric material of FIG. 2B.

<Description of the code | symbol about the principal part of drawing>

1a, 1. pressure chamber 2a, 2. nozzle

3a, 3. ink feed-in channel 4a, 4. manifold

5a, 5. Main ink flow path 6a, 6. Upper electrode

7a, 7. Piezoelectric Plate

8a, 8. Common electrode

9a, 9. SiO ₂ etch stop 10a, 10. SiO ₂ thin film

11a. (100) Si substrate 11. (110) Si substrate

12a, 12.SiO ₂ thin film 13a, 13.Si thin film (nozzle plate)

14a, 14.SiO ₂ thin film (ink spreading prevention film)

15a, 15.ZrO ₂ diaphragm (with diffusion barrier)

The inkjet printer head using the piezoelectric material according to the present invention for achieving the above object, the nozzle plate and the diaphragm are formed on both sides of the bulk silicon substrate on which the pressure chamber and the common ink flow path are formed with one partition therebetween. An ink inflow channel is formed integrally so that the nozzle of the nozzle plate and the piezoelectric plate attached to the outside of the diaphragm are opposed to each other with the pressure chamber interposed therebetween, and the partition wall allows ink of the common ink flow path to flow into the pressure chamber. Is formed, the diaphragm is characterized in that formed of a ZrO ₂ thick film of 8 ~ 10μm thick.

In the present invention, the bulk silicon substrate is a (100) plane or a (110) plane silicon substrate, the ink inflow channel is formed to contact the diaphragm, the nozzle plate is formed of single crystal or polycrystalline silicon, the diaphragm And an etching preventing SiO ₂ thin film is further formed between the bulk silicon substrate and the ink to prevent the reaction of Si with the upper surfaces of both partition walls in the pressure chamber and the upper surfaces of the partition walls of the common ink flow path and both surfaces of the nozzle plate. SiO ₂ film or Si ₃ N ₄ film is further formed, the size of the ink inflow channel is formed larger than the diameter of the nozzle, the diameter of the nozzle is formed in the range of 20 ~ 50 ?? m, the ink inflow channel Is formed in a size of 50 ?? m or more, the inclination of both walls of the pressure chamber is formed to have a slope of 30 ° ~ 40 ° with respect to the vertical plane of the nozzle plate vibration It is formed to be wider toward the plate, or formed perpendicular to the nozzle plate, the size of the pressure chamber is a distance between the nozzle plate and the diaphragm is 200 ?? m or more, the interval or minimum spacing between both partition walls of the pressure chamber The piezoelectric plate includes a PbZrTi-based compound, and a lower common electrode and an upper electrode are respectively formed on both surfaces of the piezoelectric plate, and the lower common electrode is formed of a conductive paste or a metal. It is preferable that it is formed by depositing.

In addition, the production method of the W ink jet printer head using a piezoelectric material according to the present invention for achieving the above object, comprises: (a) forming each of the bulk silicon substrate on both sides in the SiO ₂ film of the upper surface of the one side SiO ₂ film Forming a Si layer for a nozzle plate; (B) A predetermined pattern is formed on the other SiO ₂ film to form an ink inflow channel, and the bulk silicon substrate corresponding to the ink inflow channel and the common ink flow path and pressure chamber is formed by using the SiO ₂ pattern as a mask. Etching by the depth of the ink inlet channel; (C) removing the SiO ₂ pattern mask; (D) again forming an SiO ₂ film over the upper surface of the etched portion and the other side of the bulk silicon from which the SiO ₂ pattern mask is removed; (E) patterning the again formed SiO ₂ film to remove the SiO ₂ film formed in a portion where the pressure chamber and the common ink flow path are to be formed; (F) etching the bulk silicon substrate using the patterned SiO ₂ film as a mask to form the pressure chamber and the common ink flow path; (G) a step of coating an inner wall and an ink injection channel an upper surface of the inner wall of the pressure chamber and the common ink passage to the SiO ₂ film is formed SiO ₂ in order to prevent mutual chemical reactions between the ink and the Si; (H) forming a first hole to expose the Si layer for the nozzle plate by etching a predetermined region in the ink chamber among regions of SiO ₂ films formed on the one side using a laser to form a nozzle; (I) wet etching the Si layer exposed by the first hole to form a nozzle; (D) forming a ZrO ₂ diaphragm having a thickness of 8 to 10 μm on the nozzle plate opposite surface of the structure formed by the above processes; And (k) forming a piezoelectric structure on the Si diaphragm.

In the present invention, in the step (a), a (100) plane or a (110) plane silicon substrate is used as the bulk silicon substrate, and in step (a), Si is formed by reactive ion etching instead of the SiO ₂ film. _{A 3} N ₄ film may be formed, and the Si layer for the nozzle plate may be formed of single crystal or polycrystalline silicon, and in step (b), the SiO ₂ pattern may be formed by photolithography, using HF solution as an etching solution, and the bulk. In the process of etching silicon, a KOH solution is used as an etchant, and in step (e), the SiO ₂ film formed again is patterned by photolithography, and in step (bar), KOH is used as an etchant for etching the bulk silicon substrate. The solution is used, and the laser used in the step (a) uses an excimer laser, and in the step (i), the KOH solution is used as the Si layer etching solution, And depositing a SiO ₂ or Si ₃ N ₄ film to prevent spreading of the water-soluble ink on the surface of the Si layer in which the nozzle is formed between the step ( _d ) and the step ( _d ). Prior to step (a) to further form a SiO ₂ etch prevention film on the nozzle plate facing surface of the structure formed by the process of step (i), in the (step) the ZrO ₂ diaphragm is formed by screen printing method The step (ka) may include (ka-1) a sub-step of coating a conductive paste for a lower common electrode on the ZrO ₂ diaphragm; (K-2) sub-step of attaching a piezoelectric plate on the conductive paste; (K-3) sub-sintering the piezoelectric plate; And (K-4) a sub-step of forming an upper electrode on the upper surface of the piezoelectric plate. In the (K-2) sub-step, the piezoelectric plate is manufactured using a material containing a PbZrTi-based compound, or a screen. It is attached in a state that is not fired by the printing method, the sintering temperature in the (ka-3) sub-stage is preferably 1300 ℃ or less, in the (ka) step, the piezoelectric sintered in the (ka-2) sub-step It is also preferable to attach a plate on the conductive paste and to eliminate step (K-3).

Hereinafter, an inkjet printer head using a piezoelectric material according to the present invention and a manufacturing method thereof will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

Fig. 2A is a schematic perspective plan view of a first embodiment of an inkjet printer head using a piezoelectric material according to the present invention as viewed from the nozzle face. This figure shows the structure of the ink flow channel and the position of the nozzle from the nozzle face of the printhead. The first embodiment is fabricated using a (100) plane Si substrate or a silicon on insulator (SOI). The reference numeral 1a denotes a pressure chamber located under the piezoelectric plate (see FIG. 3A), the reference numeral 2a denotes a nozzle through which ink is discharged, and the reference numeral 3a denotes an ink injection channel for supplying ink to the pressure chamber 1a. (ink feed-in channel), reference numeral 4a denotes a common ink manifold for supplying ink through the ink injection channel 3a to each pressure chamber 1a located below the piezoelectric plate (see FIG. 3A). And reference numeral 5a is a hole in the flow path or diaphragm for supplying ink from the ink bottle to the common ink flow path 4a.

FIG. 3A is a schematic perspective plan view of the inkjet printer head using the piezoelectric material of FIG. 2A as viewed from a diaphragm having a piezoelectric plate. This figure mainly shows the structure of the ink flow path as seen from the diaphragm of the printer head, the piezoelectric plate and the arrangement of the upper and lower electrodes. Here, the member numbers 1a, 3a, 4a, and 5a represent elements as described in FIG. 2a, and the member number 6a is the upper electrode, the member number 7a is the piezoelectric plate, and the member number 8a is the common electrode formed below the piezoelectric plate. common electrode).

4A is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a cross section taken along the line AA ′ of FIG. 3A. This figure shows in detail the structure of the thin films as a cross-sectional view in the y direction of the coordinates shown in FIGS. 2A and 3A. As shown, the first embodiment of the inkjet printer head using the piezoelectric material according to the present invention basically comprises a pressure chamber 1a, an ink feed-in channel 3a and a common ink. SiO ₂ or Si ₃ N ₄ thin films 10a and 12a are formed on both sides of the (100) surface bulk Si substrate 11a in which the chamber space is formed to form the flow passage 4a, and the nozzle 2a is formed. To this end, an Si thin film 13a and an SiO ₂ thin film 14a are formed on the SiO ₂ or Si ₃ N ₄ thin film 12a. In addition, a ZrO ₂ diaphragm 15a for generating a pressure for causing the ink in the pressure chamber 1a to be discharged through the nozzle 2a is formed through the SiO ₂ etch stop layer 9a on a surface facing the nozzle. The SiO ₂ etch stop layer 9a is to prevent the etchant from flowing into the chamber when the ZrO ₂ diaphragm 15a is formed. On the upper surface of the ZrO ₂ diaphragm 15a, a piezoelectric element formed of an upper electrode 6a, a piezoelectric plate 7a, and a lower electrode 8a for vibrating the diaphragm 15a is attached. In particular, the ZrO ₂ diaphragm 15a is formed of a thick film having a thickness of 8 to 10 μm. In this way, even when formed into a thick film, ZrO ₂ has a high elastic modulus, and thus plays a role as a diaphragm excellently. In addition, since ZrO ₂ is an inert material, the diaphragm 15a also serves as a diffusion barrier that prevents the piezoelectric material from diffusing into the inside when the piezoelectric plate 7a is formed, thereby simplifying the structure since a separate diffusion barrier is not required.

The piezoelectric plate 7a is made of lead zirconium titanate (PbZrTi) -based compound, in particular Pb (Zr _x Ti _1-x ) O ₃ . Particularly, the bulk silicon substrate 11a uses (100) surface bulk silicon. The ink chamber 1a has a size of about 200 μm between the nozzle plate surface and the diaphragm surface, and the space between both wall surfaces of the nozzle plate side. An interval of about 100 μm, and the pressure generated by the vibration of the diaphragm 15a is transferred to the nozzle 2a as much as possible, so that the ink chamber 1a is manufactured as follows.

First, the ink injection channel 3a is disposed to be in contact with the diaphragm 15a on the same surface so that the pressure of the vibrating plate vibrating in the vertical direction is transmitted toward the ink injection channel 3a to prevent the ink from flowing back as much as possible.

Second, the aperture of the ink injection channel 3a is set to 50 µm or more, which is the aperture of the nozzle 2a, so that a sufficient amount of ink is introduced as compared with the ejected ink.

Third, both wall surfaces of the pressure chamber 1a formed by etching the bulk Si substrate 11a are opened toward the diaphragm 15a in a direction perpendicular to the surface of the Si nozzle plate 13a and at an inclination of about 30 ° to 40 °. The pressure caused by the diaphragm 15a is concentrated toward the nozzle 2a. When the (100) plane bulk Si substrate 11a is used, both wall surfaces of the pressure chamber 1a have an inclination of about 35.26 ° with the vertical direction of the plane of the nozzle plate 13a.

As described above, in the inkjet printer head using the piezoelectric material according to the present invention, the nozzle 2a, the common ink flow passage 4a and the ink injection channel 3a are integrally formed with the pressure chamber 1a using Si, and the diaphragm By using ZrO ₂ as (15a), it is not necessary to form a separate diffusion barrier film, so that the structure can be simplified and its size can be reduced. In addition, the piezoelectric plate 7a is formed by processing the piezoelectric material in a simple form and attaching it to the diaphragm 15a, or forming a pattern of the piezoelectric material directly on the diaphragm 15a and sintering it directly on the diaphragm 15a. Is produced by.

Fig. 2B is a schematic perspective plan view of a second embodiment of an inkjet printer head using a piezoelectric material according to the present invention as viewed from the nozzle face. This figure, like FIG. 2A, shows the structure of the ink flow channel and the position of the nozzle as seen from the nozzle face of the printhead. The second embodiment is fabricated using a (110) plane Si substrate or a silicon on insulator (SOI). A reference numeral 1 denotes a pressure chamber positioned below the piezoelectric plate (see FIG. 3), a reference numeral 2 denotes a nozzle through which ink is discharged, and a reference numeral 3 denotes an ink injection channel for supplying ink to the pressure chamber 1. (ink feed-in channel), reference numeral 4 denotes a common ink manifold for supplying ink through the ink injection channel 3 to each of the pressure chambers 1 located below the piezoelectric plate (see FIG. 3). And reference numeral 5 denotes holes of the flow path or diaphragm for supplying ink from the ink bottle to the common ink flow path 4. Here, the pressure chamber 1 and the common ink flow passage 4 are formed to be inclined at angles of α (= 109.47 °) and β (= 70.53 °), respectively, because they were manufactured using a (110) silicon substrate.

FIG. 3B is a schematic perspective plan view of a second embodiment of an inkjet printer head using the piezoelectric material of FIG. 2B as viewed from a diaphragm having a piezoelectric plate. This figure mainly shows the structure of the pressure chamber and the ink flow path as seen from the diaphragm of the printer head, the piezoelectric plate and the arrangement of the upper and lower electrodes. Here, members 1, 3, 4, and 5 represent elements as described in FIG. 2, wherein member 6 is an upper electrode, member 7 is a piezoelectric plate, and member 8 is a common electrode formed under the piezoelectric plate ( common electrode).

4B is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a cross section taken along the line AA ′ of FIG. 3B. This figure shows the structure of the thin films in detail as a cross-sectional view in the direction inclined by β ° toward the y axis with respect to the x axis in the xy plane of the coordinates shown in FIGS. 2b and 3b. As shown, the second embodiment of the inkjet printer head using the piezoelectric material according to the present invention basically comprises a pressure chamber 1, an ink feed-in channel 3 and a common ink. on the SiO ₂ thin film 12 to form a flow path (4), SiO ₂ films 10 and 12 are formed, the nozzle (2) on both sides of the Si substrate 11 is for a chamber space is formed in order to form the Si Thin film 13 and SiO ₂ thin film 14 are formed. In addition, the ZrO ₂ diaphragm 15 for generating a pressure for causing the ink in the pressure chamber 1 to be discharged through the nozzle 2 is formed on the surface facing the nozzle with the SiO ₂ etch preventing film 9 interposed therebetween. There is a feature of the present invention. The SiO ₂ etch stop layer 9 is for preventing the etchant from flowing into the chamber when the ZrO ₂ diaphragm 15 is formed. On the upper surface of the ZrO ₂ diaphragm 15, a piezoelectric element formed of an upper electrode 6, a piezoelectric plate 7, and a lower electrode 8 for vibrating the diaphragm 15 is attached. In particular, the ZrO ₂ diaphragm 15 is formed of a thick film having a thickness of 8 ~ 10㎛. In this way, even when formed into a thick film, ZrO ₂ has a high elastic modulus, and thus plays a role as a diaphragm excellently. In addition, since ZrO ₂ is an inert material, the diaphragm 15 also serves as a diffusion barrier that prevents the piezoelectric material from diffusing into the piezoelectric plate 7 when the piezoelectric plate 7 is formed. Here, the piezoelectric plate 7 is made of PbZrTi (lead zirconium titanate) compound, in particular Pb (Zr _x Ti _1-x ) O ₃ . In particular, the size of the ink chamber 1 is about 200 ?? m between the nozzle plate surface and the diaphragm surface, about 100 ?? m between both wall surfaces, and the pressure generated by the vibration of the diaphragm 9 The ink chamber 1 is manufactured as follows so as to be transferred toward the nozzle 2 as much as possible to facilitate ink ejection.

First, the ink injection channel 3 is arranged to be in contact with the diaphragm 9 so that the pressure of the diaphragm vibrating in the vertical direction is transmitted toward the ink injection channel 3 to prevent the ink from flowing back as much as possible.

Second, the aperture of the ink injection channel 3 is set to 20-50 μm or more, which is the aperture of the nozzle 2, so that a sufficient amount of ink is introduced as compared with the ejected ink.

Third, both wall surfaces of the pressure chamber 1 are formed by etching the (110) Si substrate so as to be perpendicular to the Si nozzle plate 13 surface, thereby reducing the size of the print head to the side. Therefore, compared with the first embodiment, the density of the print head can be increased, and the printing resolution can be increased.

Thus, the second embodiment of the inkjet print head using the piezoelectric material according to the present invention also uses the nozzle 2, the common ink flow passage 4 and the ink injection channel 3 integrally formed with the pressure chamber 1 using Si. By using ZrO ₂ as the diaphragm 15, it is not necessary to form a separate diffusion barrier film, and the structure is simple and the size thereof can be reduced in the same manner as in the first embodiment. In addition, the piezoelectric plate 7 may also be processed into a simple form by attaching the piezoelectric material to the vibrating plate 9 or forming a pattern of the piezoelectric material directly on the vibrating plate 9 as in the first embodiment. It is manufactured by sintering directly at).

The first and second embodiments of the inkjet printer head using the piezoelectric material having the above structure are different from each other in that the (100) and (110) plane bulk Si substrates are used as the substrate, but the rest of the structure is the same. . Therefore, in the manufacturing method of the first and second embodiments, since the etching direction is determined according to the crystallization direction when etching the silicon substrate, there is only a difference in the angles of the barrier rib structure forming the ink chamber and the ink flow path. It demonstrates based on a manufacturing method.

The inkjet printer head using the piezoelectric material according to the present invention uses a bulk silicon substrate or a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrate to form a nozzle and an ink passage integrally with the pressure chamber, and the piezoelectric plate has a simple form of piezoelectric material. It is manufactured by attaching to the diaphragm by processing or by forming a pattern of piezoelectric material directly on the diaphragm and sintering it directly on the diaphragm 15. The diaphragm 15 has a high modulus of elasticity and is an inert material. ZrO ₂ is used as a material that can prevent the diffusion of PZT material used as a device. A wet etching method is used in the nozzle and ink flow path forming process. This is a well known and economic way. By introducing a micro-fabrication process applied to such Si, there is an advantage of widening the range of the print head design, manufacturing costs can be reduced, and the print head can be manufactured precisely. This means that it is possible to economically produce a print head capable of producing high-resolution prints. Such a manufacturing method will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 5A to 5O.

First, a process for forming an ink feed-in channel for supplying ink to a pressure chamber and a pressure chamber through bulk etching, as shown in FIG. 5A, an ink injection channel (ink) It is necessary to form an etching pattern of a portion corresponding to a feed-in channel. In FIG. 5A, SiO ₂ thin films 10a and 12 are respectively coated on both surfaces of a bulk (110) plane Si substrate 11. Here, the SiO ₂ thin films 10a and 12 used as the etch stop layer may be formed of Si ₃ N ₄ . Next, an upper surface of the SiO ₂ thin film 12 is coated with a Si thin film for forming a nozzle or a previously prepared Si thin plate is sealed, and a photoresist is coated on the SiO ₂ thin film 10a on the opposite surface. Afterwards, UV light is exposed to the ink feed-in channel and the pressure chamber. Subsequently, when the exposed portion is removed, portions corresponding to the ink feed-in channel and the pressure chamber are exposed.

Next, an ink injection channel and etching the exposed SiO ₂ layer (10a) to form a SiO ₂ pattern (10b), and the SiO ₂ pattern (10b) as a mask, as shown in Figure 5b (ink feed- the Si substrate of the portion corresponding to the in channel) and the pressure chamber is etched by the size of the ink flow path. At this time, the exposed SiO ₂ layer 10a portion is wet etched using a water-soluble HF solution. The chemical reactions involved are as follows.

SiO ₂ + 6 HF ?? H ₂ SiF ₆ + ₂ H ₂ O

When the SiO ₂ layer 10a reaches the Si substrate 11 as the etching proceeds, the etching of the Si substrate 11 proceeds at a relatively slow speed, so Si is an etch barrier in the SiO ₂ etching process using HF aqueous solution. Semiconductor integrated circuit processing technology, WR Runyan, KE Bean, Addison-Wesley Publishing Company Inc., 1990, New York, USA. If the Si ₃ N ₄ layer 10 is formed instead of the SiO ₂ layer as an etch stop layer, etching is performed by reactive ion etching. And (110) Si substrate 11 is etched using KOH aqueous solution. The chemical reactions involved in the etching of Si atoms are:

Si + H ₂ O + 2KOH ?? K ₂ SiO ₃ + ₂ H ₂

During Si wet etching process, SiO ₂ is hardly etched (e.g., when etching solution containing KOH 250 grams, Normal Propanol 200 grams, H ₂ O 800 grams), Si is etched at a rate of 1 μm per minute at 80 degrees Celsius. SiO ₂ is etched at 20 kW / min, Semiconductor integrated circuit processing technology, WR Runyan, KE Bean, Addison-Wesley Publishing Company Inc., 1990, New York, USA) In etching, SiO ₂ serves as an etch barrier.

Next, as illustrated in FIG. 5C, the SiO ₂ pattern 10b, which is an etching mask, is etched and removed.

Next, as shown in FIG. 5D, the SiO ₂ layer 10c is again coated. This is necessary to form a mask pattern for etching a (110) Si substrate to form a pressure chamber and a common ink manifold.

Next, as shown in FIG. 5E, the SiO ₂ layer 10c is etched using a photolithograpy process as in FIGS. 5A and 5B to form a pressure chamber and a common ink manifold. An etching SiO ₂ pattern 10d is formed. The SiO ₂ applied on the upper surface of the ink feed-in channel and the upper surface of the portion forming the one side partition of the pressure chamber remains, and the remaining SiO ₂ layer is removed.

Next, as shown in FIG. 5F, the (110) plane Si substrate 11 is etched using the SiO ₂ pattern 10d as a mask, thereby forming a pressure chamber 1 and a common ink manifold 4. do. At this time, since the bulk Si substrate 11 is a (110) plane, the bulk Si substrate 11 is etched with KOH solution to form a wall surface in the vertical direction of the substrate.

Next, as shown in FIG. 5G, the pressure chamber 1 and the common ink flow path 4 and the ink feed-in channel 3 are replaced to prevent the mutual chemical interaction between the ink and Si. coated with SiO ₂ to form an SiO ₂ film (10e).

Next, as shown in FIG. 5H, the SiO ₂ layers 10e and 12 are etched using an excimer laser to form a nozzle.

Next, as shown in FIG. 5I, the nozzle 2 is formed by wet etching the exposed Si layer 13 by etching with an excimer laser.

Next, as shown in Fig. 5J, in order to prevent the water-soluble ink from spreading on the surface of the Si layer 13, SiO ₂ is deposited to form a non-wetting coating film 43.

Next, as shown in FIG. 5K, an amorphous SiO ₂ film 9 is coated on the opposite surface of the nozzle plate 13 in the structure formed in the above process. At this time, the amorphous SiO ₂ film 9 absorbs the volume change occurring during sintering of ZrO ₂ during the formation of the ZrO ₂ diaphragm in the next process to minimize stress formation. This is because the formation of ZrO ₂ to which the piezoelectric element is attached is made on SiO ₂ in an amorphous state because the volume change formed by sintering ZrO ₂ is absorbed due to the viscous flow of amorphous SiO ₂ .

Next, as shown in FIG. 5L, a ZrO ₂ thick film is printed on the amorphous SiO ₂ film 9 by screen printing and then sintered to form a diaphragm 15 having a thickness of 8 to 10 μm. The ZrO ₂ thick film 15 also has a function as a diffusion barrier that prevents the piezoelectric material from diffusing when the piezo-electrinc materials are sintered.

Next, as shown in FIG. 5M, a lower common electrode 8 is formed. The lower common electrode 8 is formed by coating a conductive paste (for example, Pt or Ag / Pd paste) by screen printing. This conductive paste serves as an adhesive for attaching the piezoelectric plate 7.

Next, as shown in FIG. 5N, a piezoelectric plate 7 made of a lead zirconium titanate (PbZrTi) -based compound, in particular, Pb (Zr _x Ti _1-x ) O ₃ , is used as a lower common electrode 8, that is, a conductive paste. Attach with adhesive and sinter at below 1000 ° C.

Next, as shown in FIG. 5O, the upper electrode 6 is formed on the upper surface of the piezoelectric plate to complete the device.

As described above, in the case of the prior application (Patent Printhead), the ink flow path and the diaphragm are made of Si to form a thin film anti-reaction film to eliminate the reaction between the piezoelectric element composition and Si when the piezoelectric element is attached to the diaphragm while being sintered. However, due to the inherent characteristics of the reaction prevention film, there is a limit in the composition of the piezoelectric element that can be used because there is a need to lower the temperature when the piezoelectric element is sintered on the Si wafer. In contrast, in the case of the present invention, when SiO ₂ removes the portion exposed to the ink chamber through wet etching, ZrO ₂ may be used as a reaction prevention film because the reaction with PZT is negligible. In particular, since ZrO ₂ withstands high temperature, it is possible to sinter the PZT composition in a wide area, thereby making it possible to utilize a variety of PZT compositions. Therefore, in the case of the prior application, a plurality of thin films are coated to form a reaction prevention film between Si and the piezoelectric element, in the case of the present invention, since the process of forming a separate reaction prevention film is not necessary, the process is simple and the production cost is low. .

In addition, in the case of Epson (Ceramic ink flow path) technology, the shape of the ink flow path is formed through lamination and processing in a green state through tape casting or the like, followed by sintering. As the organics added during tape casting are removed, significant volumetric shrinkage occurs, making it difficult to accurately control the shape.

ZrO ₂ thick film formed in the present invention is a piezoelectric element attached are made on top of the amorphous SiO ₂ volume change is formed and sintering the ZrO ₂ is an amorphous SiO ₂ viscous flow (viscous flow), so the volume change of the absorption volume change and The stress formation that occurs together is minimized.

And compared with Epson technology, since the ink flow path is formed using Si, there is no difficulty in controlling volume change.

Claims (33)

A nozzle plate and a diaphragm are formed on both sides of a bulk silicon substrate on which a pressure chamber and a common ink flow path are formed, with one partition interposed therebetween, and a piezoelectric body attached to the nozzle of the nozzle plate and the outside of the diaphragm with the pressure chamber therebetween. The plate is formed integrally to face each other, and the partition wall is formed with an ink inflow channel for introducing the ink of the common ink flow path into the pressure chamber, the diaphragm is formed of a ZrO ₂ thick film of 8 ~ 10μm thick piezoelectric Inkjet printer head using materials. The method of claim 1, The bulk silicon substrate is an inkjet printer head using a piezoelectric material, characterized in that the (100) plane silicon substrate. The method of claim 1, And said bulk silicon substrate is a (110) plane silicon substrate. The method of claim 1, And the ink inlet channel is formed to contact the diaphragm. The method of claim 1, And the nozzle plate is formed of monocrystalline or polycrystalline silicon. The method of claim 1, An inkjet printer head using a piezoelectric material, characterized in that an etching preventing SiO ₂ thin film is further formed between the diaphragm and the bulk silicon substrate. The method of claim 1, A piezoelectric film further comprising an SiO ₂ film or a Si ₃ N ₄ film formed on both sides of the barrier ribs inside the pressure chamber, on the barrier ribs of the common ink flow path, and on both surfaces of the nozzle plate to prevent ink from reacting with Si. Inkjet printer head using materials. The method of claim 1, The ink inflow channel is formed to be larger than the diameter of the nozzle, the diameter of the nozzle is formed in the range of 20 ~ 50 ?? m, the size of the ink inflow channel is piezoelectric, characterized in that formed in more than 50 ?? m Inkjet printer head using materials. The method according to claim 1 or 2, An inclination of both walls of the pressure chamber is formed to have an inclination of 30 ° to 40 ° with respect to the vertical plane of the nozzle plate is formed so as to further open toward the diaphragm, the inkjet printer head using a piezoelectric material. The method according to claim 1 or 3, The inclination of both walls of the pressure chamber is formed perpendicular to the nozzle plate, the inkjet printer head using a piezoelectric material. The method of claim 1, The size of the pressure chamber is an inkjet printer head using a piezoelectric material, characterized in that the gap between the nozzle plate and the diaphragm is more than 200 ?? m, the gap or the minimum spacing between the two partition walls of the pressure chamber is 100 ?? m. . The method of claim 1, The piezoelectric plate includes a PbZrTi-based compound, characterized in that the inkjet printer head using a piezoelectric material. The method of claim 1, An inkjet printer head using a piezoelectric material, characterized in that lower common electrodes and upper electrodes are formed on both surfaces of the piezoelectric plate, respectively. The method of claim 13, The lower common electrode is formed of a conductive paste or an inkjet printer head using a piezoelectric material, characterized in that formed by depositing a metal. (A) forming a SiO ₂ film on each side of the bulk silicon substrate, and forming a Si layer for the nozzle plate on the upper surface of the one side SiO ₂ film; (B) A predetermined pattern is formed on the other SiO ₂ film to form an ink inflow channel, and the bulk silicon substrate corresponding to the ink inflow channel and the common ink flow path and pressure chamber is formed by using the SiO ₂ pattern as a mask. Etching by the depth of the ink inlet channel; (C) removing the SiO ₂ pattern mask; (D) again forming an SiO ₂ film over the upper surface of the etched portion and the other side of the bulk silicon from which the SiO ₂ pattern mask is removed; (E) patterning the again formed SiO ₂ film to remove the SiO ₂ film formed in a portion where the pressure chamber and the common ink flow path are to be formed; (F) etching the bulk silicon substrate using the patterned SiO ₂ film as a mask to form the pressure chamber and the common ink flow path; (G) a step of coating an inner wall and an ink injection channel an upper surface of the inner wall of the pressure chamber and the common ink passage to the SiO ₂ film is formed SiO ₂ in order to prevent mutual chemical reactions between the ink and the Si; (H) forming a first hole to expose the Si layer for the nozzle plate by etching a predetermined region in the ink chamber among regions of SiO ₂ films formed on the one side using a laser to form a nozzle; (I) wet etching the Si layer exposed by the first hole to form a nozzle; (D) forming a ZrO ₂ diaphragm with a thickness of 8 to 10 μm on a surface opposite to the nozzle plate of the structure formed by the above processes; And (K) forming a piezoelectric structure on the Si diaphragm; A method of manufacturing an inkjet printer head using a piezoelectric material, comprising. The method of claim 15, And (100) plane or (110) plane silicon substrate as the bulk silicon substrate in the step (a). The method of claim 15, A method of manufacturing an inkjet printer head using a piezoelectric material, wherein a Si ₃ N ₄ film is formed instead of the SiO ₂ film in the step (a). The method of claim 17, In the step (b), the Si ₃ N ₄ pattern is formed by a reactive ion etching method. The method of claim 15, The method of manufacturing an inkjet printer head using a piezoelectric material, wherein the Si layer for the nozzle plate is formed of single crystal or polycrystalline silicon in the step (a). The method of claim 15, In the step (b), the SiO ₂ pattern is formed by a photolithography method, but a method of manufacturing an ink jet printer head using a piezoelectric material, characterized in that using the HF solution as an etching solution. The method of claim 15, The method of manufacturing an inkjet printer head using a piezoelectric material, characterized in that using the KOH solution as an etchant in the process of etching the bulk silicon in the step (b). The method of claim 15, And the SiO ₂ film formed again in the step (e) is patterned by photolithography. The method of claim 15, A method of manufacturing an inkjet printer head using a piezoelectric material, characterized in that a KOH solution is used as an etchant for etching the bulk silicon substrate in the step (bar). The method of claim 15, The laser used in the step (h) is an inkjet printer head manufacturing method using a piezoelectric material, characterized in that using an excimer laser. The method of claim 15, The method of manufacturing an inkjet printer head using a piezoelectric material, characterized in that using the KOH solution as the Si layer etching solution in the step (i). The method of claim 15, And forming an anti-spread film by depositing a SiO ₂ or Si ₃ N ₄ film to prevent the water-soluble ink from spreading on the surface of the Si layer in which the nozzle is formed between the (i) and ( _d) steps. An inkjet printer head manufacturing method using a piezoelectric material. The method of claim 15, Prior to the step (d), an SiO ₂ etch stop layer is further formed on the opposite surface of the nozzle plate of the structure formed by the steps (a) to (i). Manufacturing method. The method of claim 15, The method of manufacturing an inkjet printer head using a piezoelectric material, characterized in that in the step (d), the ZrO ₂ diaphragm is formed by screen printing. The method of claim 15, wherein step (k) comprises: (Ca-1) a sub-step of coating a conductive paste for a lower common electrode on the ZrO ₂ diaphragm; (K-2) sub-step of attaching a piezoelectric plate on the conductive paste; (K-3) sub-sintering the piezoelectric plate; And (K-4) sub-step of forming an upper electrode on the piezoelectric plate; A method of manufacturing an inkjet printer head using a piezoelectric material, comprising. The method of claim 29, In the sub-step (K-2), the piezoelectric plate is manufactured using a material containing a PbZrTi-based compound. The method of claim 29, The piezoelectric plate is a method of manufacturing an inkjet printer head using a piezoelectric material, characterized in that in the sub-step (c-2), the piezoelectric plate is attached without being fired by screen printing. The method of claim 29, The method of manufacturing an inkjet printer head using a piezoelectric material according to claim 3, wherein the sintering temperature is 1300 ° C. or less. The method of claim 15, In the step (k), the piezoelectric plate sintered in the step (k-2) is attached onto the conductive paste, and the (k-3) substep is removed. Method of preparation.