Electroless copper plating polydopamine nanoparticles

US10760162B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignee

• The Research Foundation for The State University of New York · US

Inventors

• Siyuan Ma · Chicago, US
• Liang Liu · Taipei, TW
• Vadim Bromberg · Niskayuna, US
• Timothy Singler · Binghamton, US

Key dates

• Filing date: May 16, 2019
• Grant date: Sep 1, 2020
• Expiry date: May 16, 2039

Classification

• Technology area (CPC H): Electricity
• CPC primary: H05K2203/1173
• WIPO field: Surface technology, coating
• WIPO sector: Chemistry

Abstract

Aqueous dispersions of artificially synthesized, mussel-inspired polydopamine nanoparticles were inkjet printed on flexible polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrates. Narrow line patterns (4 μm in width) of polydopamine resulted due to evaporatively driven transport (coffee ring effect). The printed patterns were metallized via a site-selective Cu electroless plating process at a controlled temperature (30° C.) for varied bath times. The lowest electrical resistivity value of the plated Cu lines was about 6 times greater than the bulk resistivity of Cu. This process presents an industrially viable way to fabricate Cu conductive fine patterns for flexible electronics at low temperature, and low cost.