KR20140094789A - Enlarged Light Sintering Apparatus of Electro Conductive Ink - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a light sintering apparatus according to the present invention, in a light sintering apparatus which sinters an electro conductive ink coated on a substrate by radiating a beam to the substrate which is transferred in one direction, includes a light output part which sinters the electro conductive ink by radiating a beam of a pulse type by using applied power and has a plurality of intense pulsed light (IPL) method lamp units which is extended in the longitudinal direction and have an overlapping region which is overlapped in the transfer direction of the substrate.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to an expandable light sintering apparatus for an electroconductive ink,

The present invention relates to an expandable light sintering apparatus for an electroconductive ink, and more particularly, to an electroconductive ink such as a patterned fine metal particle or precursor on a substrate, which can be easily and rapidly sintered at a low temperature, The present invention relates to an expandable light sintering apparatus of an electroconductive ink which can easily expand the width of an optical output unit.

The printing technique is a technique of putting a letter or a figure drawn on a sheet surface using ink into a paper or cloth. Recently, various techniques such as inkjet printing, flexographic printing, gravure printing and screen printing have been used . These technologies are applied to high value-added products such as RFID systems, large-area display devices, thin-plate solar cells, and thin-plate batteries, and the demand for technology is increasing.

Particularly, direct patterning technology through inkjet is a technique of forming a wiring by discharging a predetermined amount of ink directly to an accurate position through an inkjet head. Such a technique has the advantage of not only reducing the material cost but also shortening the manufacturing process and time. At present, nano ink using at least one of gold, silver and copper is used as the conductive metal ink for direct patterning. The key technology in inkjet printing is sintering of conductive ink. Up to now, high temperature sintering processes have been used to sinter various particles. In the thermal sintering process, the metal nanoparticles are heated to a temperature of about 200 to 350 ° C. in an inert gas state in order to sinter the metal nanoparticles. In addition, a laser sintering method capable of sintering at room temperature and atmospheric pressure is widely used.

However, recently, attempts have been made to fabricate electronic patterns on flexible low-temperature polymers or paper, and therefore, the high-temperature sintering method has a problem that it is difficult to apply to the printing electronic industry and technology. In addition, copper is known to have a very difficult sintering due to the formation of an oxide layer on its surface due to thermochemical equilibrium, and also to decrease the conductivity after sintering.

In addition, the laser sintering method can only be sintered to a very small area, resulting in poor practicality.

KR2012-0056114 10

Accordingly, the present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a method of manufacturing an electroconductive ink, such as fine metal particles or a precursor patterned on a substrate, which can be easily and rapidly sintered even at a low temperature, And it is an object of the present invention to provide an expandable light sintering apparatus of an electroconductive ink which can easily expand the width of an output portion.

A light sintering apparatus for solving the above problems is a light sintering apparatus for sintering an electroconductive ink coated on a substrate by irradiating light onto a substrate to be fed in one direction, And an optical output unit having a plurality of IPL (Intense Pulsed Light) lamp units extending in the lateral direction while having an overlapping region overlapping with each other along the conveying direction of the substrate, by sintering the electroconductive ink.

At this time, the lamp unit may be a xenon flash lamp.

Also, the lamp unit may be provided such that the end portions of the adjacent lamp units overlap with each other for uniform sintering of the entire area of the substrate by improving the energy of the end portion where the irradiation energy of the white light is relatively relatively higher than that of the central region.

Further, the lamp units may be provided so that mutually adjoining lamp units are shifted from each other such that light irradiated from the overlapped portion is not blocked, and the lamp unit may be arranged in a zigzag manner.

Further, the plurality of lamp units may be provided on the same horizontal plane for uniform sintering of the electroconductive ink.

The lamp unit may further include a reflector disposed on the upper portion of the lamp unit to change an optical path of light irradiated upward from the lamp unit, and the reflector may be separately provided in each of the lamp units.

Further, a light wavelength filter provided at a lower portion of the lamp unit for filtering only white light of a predetermined wavelength band may be further provided, and the light wavelength filter may be separately provided in each lamp unit.

The substrate transfer unit may further include a substrate transfer unit disposed under the optical output unit to transfer the substrate in one direction, and the substrate transfer unit may be provided to transfer the substrate in a direction perpendicular to the optical output unit.

The present invention has the following effects.

First, there is an effect that various minute metal particles of micro or nano size patterned on a substrate can be sintered without damaging metal particles on a substrate by irradiating extreme ultraviolet white light generated from a xenon flash lamp.

Second, since the sintering is performed using light, it is also applicable to a flexible low-temperature polymer or a paper substrate.

Thirdly, there is an effect of shortening the process time according to the sintering process by irradiating the extreme ultraviolet-white light to the electroconductive ink such as the fine particles or the precursor on the substrate for a relatively short time.

Fourthly, since sintering is possible in a short time, there is an effect that oxidation phenomenon of metal particles can be prevented by sintering metal particles which are likely to be oxidized like copper, in a short time.

Fifth, by arranging a plurality of lamp units laterally, it is possible to easily sinter a substrate having a large area, and there is an effect that a substrate having a large area can be sintered at one time in a zigzag manner.

Sixth, since the plurality of lamp units are provided so that the end portions having relatively weaker energy are overlapped with each other than the center portion, uniform sintering can be effected on the entire area of the substrate.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of the specification, illustrate preferred embodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serve to further the understanding of the technical idea of the invention, And shall not be interpreted.
1 is a perspective view of a light sintering apparatus according to the present invention;
2 is a plan view showing an arrangement structure of a lamp unit according to the present invention;
3 is a graph showing the parameters used in the irradiation condition of the short-pulse white light generated in the lamp unit according to the present invention;
4 is a graph showing the intensity of light according to the position of one lamp unit;
5 is a graph showing the intensity of light according to superimposition of a plurality of lamp units; And
6 is a longitudinal sectional view of a light output section according to the present invention.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a perspective view of a light sintering apparatus according to the present invention. 1, the optical sintering apparatus according to the present invention includes a light output unit 100, a power supply unit (not shown), a power storage unit (not shown), and a substrate transfer unit 200, 100 includes a plurality of lamp units 110, a reflector 120, and a light wavelength filter 130.

3 is a graph showing parameters used in an irradiation condition of short-pulse white light generated in the lamp unit 110 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a graph showing a parameter FIG. 5 is a graph showing the intensity of light according to the position of the lamp unit 110 of FIG. The light sintering apparatus is composed of a plurality of lamp units 110 for sintering an electroconductive ink such as fine metal particles or precursors patterned on a substrate 300 having a large area. At this time, it is preferable that the lamp unit 110 uses a xenon flash lamp and emits white light in the form of a plane. The xenon flash lamp comprises a configuration comprising a xenon gas injected into a cylinder-shaped sealed quartz tube. Xenon gas outputs light energy from input electrical energy, and has an energy conversion rate of more than 50%. In addition, a xenon flash lamp has metal electrodes such as tungsten formed on both sides thereof for anode and cathode formation. When a high power and current generated from the power source unit described later is applied to the lamp unit 110 having such a configuration, the injected xenon gas is ionized and a spark is generated between the anode and the cathode. At this time, when electric charge accumulated in a power storage unit described later is applied, a current of about 1000 A flows for 1 ms to 10 ms through a spark generated in the lamp unit 110, and an arc plasma shape is generated in the lamp unit 110, Light of strong intensity is generated. The light generated here is seen as white light since it contains a light spectrum of a wide wavelength band from ultraviolet rays ranging from 160 nm to 2.5 mm to infrared rays. In the present invention, a xenon flash lamp is described as an embodiment, but any type of lamp unit 110 may be used as long as it can achieve such a purpose.

As shown in FIG. 3, the irradiation conditions using the lamp unit 110 include intensity of the lamp unit 110 that emits light in an IPL (Intense Pulsed Light) method, intensity of the pulp of the lamp unit 110 A pulse width of the lamp unit 110 and a pulse gap of the lamp unit 110. The pulse width of the lamp unit 110 may be determined by various parameters such as a pulse width, As the lamp unit 110 used in the present invention, for example, a xenon flash lamp can be used, and its intensity is preferably 5 J / cm ² to 50 J / cm ² , more preferably 10 J / cm ² 30 J / cm < ² >. When the intensity of the xenon flash lamp is less than 5 J / cm ^2, the sintering of the electroconductive ink may not be smooth, and when the intensity is more than 50 J / cm ² , the light sintering apparatus may be overloaded. In consideration of the efficiency of the sintering step, the pulse width is preferably 0.1 ms to 100 ms, more preferably 5 ms to 50 ms. In consideration of the efficiency of the sintering step, the number of pulses is preferably 1 to 200 times, more preferably 1 to 50 times. When the number of pulses is two or more, the pulse gap of the xenon flash lamp is preferably 0.1 ms to 100 ms, more preferably 5 ms to 50 ms, in consideration of the effect of the sintering step and the life of the light sintering apparatus. ms. The strength, the pulse width, the pulse number, and the pulse gap of the lamp unit 110 can be variously combined in various ranges depending on the type of the substrate 300 to be used, the constituent components and contents of the electroconductive ink, But is not necessarily limited to.

If the length of the single lamp unit 110 as described above is relatively shorter than the width of the substrate 300, it is difficult to sinter the electroconductive ink such as patterned fine metal particles or precursors on the substrate 300, A plurality of lamp units 110 are provided in the lateral direction. However, when a plurality of lamp units 110 are installed so that each lamp unit 110 is in contact with the end of the adjacent lamp unit 110, as shown in the following Table 1 and FIG. 4, Since the intensity of the light irradiated at the end portion of the single lamp unit 110 is relatively weaker than the intensity of the light irradiated at the center portion, the sintering of the patterned fine metal particles or the precursor on the end portion side of the lamp unit 110 may not be smooth have.

Measuring position (mm) Energy (J / cm ² ) One 0 3 0.09 5 0.17 7 0.27 9 0.4 11 0.58 13 0.82 15 1.09 17 0.96 19 1.28 21 1.65 23 1.89 25 2.1 27 2.34 29 2.45 31 2.57 33 2.62 35 2.68 37 2.67 39 2.71 41 2.72 43 2.74 45 2.72 47 2.7 49 2.71 51 2.72 53 2.65 55 2.67 57 2.61 59 2.54 61 2.4 63 2.23 65 1.98 67 1.71 69 1.48 71 1.12 72 0.94 73 0.75 75 0.96 77 0.71 79 0.5 81 0.34 83 0.21 85 0.14 87 0

The result data of the above-described [Table 1] is a measurement value obtained by measuring the energy of the lamp unit 110 under the following conditions. The specifications of the lamp unit 110 and the power source used in this measurement are shown in the following [Table 2] and [Table 3], respectively.

Model Bore
(mm) Arc
(mm) Quartz
Type Lamp
Type Application STX-
750125-W 5 50 CDQ XFP Hair Removal

Model
Input Output
Power No. of Driven Lamps Max. Output
Voltage
Display
Weight Dimension
(cm) ST-IPL
-10-3 220VAC 1000W 3 260V 240128 LCD 8Kg 383114

The light receiving portion of the sensor is measured at a height 10 mm apart from the lower end surface of the lamp unit 110 by using the lamp and the power source portion having the specifications as shown in [Table 2] and [Table 3] [Table 1] shows the results measured by the energy meter. At this time, OPHIR's NOVA2 model was used as the energy meter and L50 (300) A-IPL model of OPHIR was used as the sensor.

If the lamp units 110 are not overlapped and the vertical sections of the adjacent lamp units 110 are brought into contact with each other, the sintering of the lamp units 110 is not smooth. Therefore, Place the negative side so that they overlap each other. At this time, when the adjacent lamp unit 110 is vertically overlapped, the light is blocked by the lamp unit 110 located at the lower part when the light of the upper lamp unit 110 is irradiated, As shown in Fig. 6A, the end portions of the respective lamp units 110 are overlapped with each other by an overlapping portion A of a predetermined length. At this time, the overlapping method of the plurality of lamp units may be overlapped in any manner, but preferably, the mounting position is zigzag to reduce the difference in sintering time of the electroconductive ink printed from one side to the other side of the substrate 300 Can be arranged in the form of a circle.

5 is a graph showing the intensity of light according to superimposition of a plurality of lamp units. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, when the lamp unit 110 is installed so that 15 mm to 20 mm are overlapped with each other from the end of each lamp unit 110, the overlapped portion A of the end portion of the lamp unit 110, Energy is increased as much as the energy that is obtained. Accordingly, the optical output unit 100 can obtain uniform intensity of light throughout the longitudinal direction by compensating for the overlapping of the weaker end portions. At this time, although the overlapping length is described as an example of 15 mm to 20 mm, the length may be changed according to the type and length of the lamp unit 110.

6 is a longitudinal sectional view of a light output section according to the present invention. 6, the reflection plate 120 is provided on the upper portion of the lamp unit 110 to output light radiated upward from the lamp unit 110 in a downward direction. 6, the reflector 120 is separately provided in each of the lamp units 110, but only one reflector 120 that accommodates all of the plurality of lamp units 110 may be provided Can be installed.

As shown in FIG. 6, the light wavelength filter 130 filters only extreme ultraviolet white light having a predetermined wavelength band, which is provided under the lamp unit 110. In particular, ultraviolet light emitted from a lamp unit 110 using a xenon flash lamp may damage the substrate 300 made of a polymer material, so that light in the ultraviolet band should be blocked. Depending on the type of the substrate 300 Thereby selectively blocking the wavelength band of the irradiated light.

The power unit is a device for generating a voltage and a current and for applying the voltage and current to the lamp unit 110 of the optical output unit 100 to adjust the intensity of the lamp unit 110. The power unit integrates and stores the charges, And charges are generated when a spark is generated between both electrodes of the organic EL element.

The substrate transferring unit 200 is a device for moving the substrate 300 to be sintered and is a device such as a conveyor belt provided at a predetermined distance from the optical output unit 100 below the optical output unit 100. At this time, the substrate transfer unit 200 is positioned to transfer the substrate 300 in a direction perpendicular to the optical output unit 100 for uniform photo-sintering of the substrate 300.

As described above, those skilled in the art will understand that the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. It is therefore to be understood that the above-described embodiments are to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is defined by the appended claims rather than the detailed description and all changes or modifications derived from the meaning and scope of the claims and their equivalents should be construed as being included within the scope of the present invention.

100: light output section
110: lamp unit
120: reflector
130: Optical wavelength filter
200; Substrate transfer portion
300: substrate
A: overlapping region

Claims (12)

1. A light sintering apparatus for sintering an electroconductive ink coated on a substrate by irradiating light onto a substrate to be transported in one direction,
A plurality of IPL (Intense Pulsed Light) methods in which pulsed light is irradiated by an applied power source to sinter the electroconductive ink and extended in a transverse direction with overlapping regions overlapping each other along the transport direction of the substrate And a light output section having a lamp unit. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the lamp unit is a xenon flash lamp. The method according to claim 1,
The lamp unit is provided such that the end portions of the lamp units adjacent to each other overlap each other for uniform sintering of the entire area of the substrate by improving the energy of the end portion where the irradiation energy of the white light is relatively relatively, Of the total amount of the conductive ink. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the lamp units are provided such that mutually adjacent lamp units are shifted from each other so as not to block the light irradiated at the overlapped portions. 5. The method of claim 4,
Wherein the lamp unit is arranged in a zigzag manner. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the plurality of lamp units are provided on the same horizontal plane for uniform sintering of the electroconductive ink. The method according to claim 1,
Further comprising a reflector disposed on the lamp unit for changing an optical path of light irradiated upward from the lamp unit. 8. The method of claim 7,
Wherein the reflection plate is separately provided in each of the lamp units. The method according to claim 1,
Further comprising an optical wavelength filter disposed under the lamp unit for filtering only white light of a predetermined wavelength band. 10. The method of claim 9,
Wherein the light wavelength filter is separately provided in each of the lamp units. The method according to claim 1,
Further comprising a substrate transfer unit provided below the light output unit for transferring the substrate in one direction. 12. The method of claim 11,
Wherein the substrate transfer unit is configured to transfer the substrate in a direction perpendicular to the optical output unit.

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