Interconnection of Passive Components using Printed Aerosol-Jet Traces

In this paper, process recipes for interconnection of passive components have been developed using aerosol-jet printing and direct-write printing. Assembly of components on substrates is conventionally done using solder joints. However, additive print methods in many formulations on low temperature substrates may not be compatible with traditional surface-mount processes. In this paper, interconnection process recipes for surface-mount passives including resistor, capacitors and inductors have been explored using a combination of direct-print interconnects and electrically conductive adhesives. Process recipes and the correlation of process parameters with the expected electrical performance, mechanical performance and reliability have been studied. Aerosol Jet Printing technique with silver nanoparticle ink and polyimide dielectric ink has been used to accomplish component attachment. The conductive traces are printed using ultrasonic atomizer system and the dielectric is printed using the pneumatic system. The LC filter circuit printed is compared with the test results of commercial rigid LC filter to showcase the AJ printing capabilities.