Methods and apparatus for conductive element deposition and formation
First Claim
1. A method of forming an assembly having at least one conductive trace, the method implemented using an apparatus configured to eject drops of a conductive fluid comprising:
- providing a substrate upon which the at least one conductive trace is to be deposited;
causing transport of at least a portion of the apparatus over a surface of the substrate while ejecting a plurality of conductive fluid drops to form the at least one conductive trace, each of the plurality of conductive fluid drops comprising a volume of at least 500 pL; and
heating at least the at least one conductive trace to remove at least a portion of the plurality of conductive fluid drops so as to render the at least one trace substantially permanent on said substrate.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
A conductive element such as an antenna, for use in electronic devices, including mobile devices such as cellular phones, smartphones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), laptops, and wireless tablets. In one exemplary aspect, the present disclosure relates to a conductive antenna formed using deposition of conductive fluids as well as the method and equipment for forming the same. In one embodiment, a “thick” antenna element can be formed in one pass of a dispensing head or nozzle, thereby reducing manufacturing cost and increasing manufacturing efficiency.
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Citations
30 Claims
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1. A method of forming an assembly having at least one conductive trace, the method implemented using an apparatus configured to eject drops of a conductive fluid comprising:
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providing a substrate upon which the at least one conductive trace is to be deposited; causing transport of at least a portion of the apparatus over a surface of the substrate while ejecting a plurality of conductive fluid drops to form the at least one conductive trace, each of the plurality of conductive fluid drops comprising a volume of at least 500 pL; and heating at least the at least one conductive trace to remove at least a portion of the plurality of conductive fluid drops so as to render the at least one trace substantially permanent on said substrate. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. An article of manufacture including an antenna formed upon a surface of a substrate, the antenna formed by a method comprising:
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providing a printhead including a nozzle that is configured to eject drops of a conductive fluid and not entrain said drops in a gaseous vehicle, the conductive fluid including conductive silver flakes in a fluid vehicle, each of the drops of the conductive fluid comprising a volume greater than or equal to 500 pL, whereby 95% by weight of the silver flakes have a major dimension in a range of 2 μ
m to 20 μ
m;securing the article in a fixture; transporting the printhead over a surface of the article while ejecting drops of the conductive fluid to form a fluid trace; and heating the fluid trace in an oven to remove at least a portion of the fluid vehicle, whereby a resultant trace comprises a thickness in a range of 20 μ
m to 100 μ
m. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25)
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26. An article of manufacture including an antenna formed upon a surface of a substrate using a printhead, the printhead including a nozzle that is configured to eject drops of a conductive fluid, each of the drops of the conductive fluid comprising a volume of 500 to 10,000 pL, the conductive fluid including conductive silver flakes in a fluid vehicle, whereby 95% by weight of the silver flakes have a major dimension in a range of 2 μ
- m to 20 μ
m, the method comprising;securing the article in a fixture; transporting the printhead over a surface of the article while ejecting the drops of the conductive fluid to form a fluid trace, whereby each pass of the printhead forms a path segment comprising a dry trace thickness that is in a range of 20 μ
m to 100 μ
m and is at least two times a skin depth of a dry trace at an operating frequency of 1 GHz; andheating the fluid trace in an oven to remove at least a portion of the fluid vehicle. - View Dependent Claims (27, 28, 29)
- m to 20 μ
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30. A method of forming a conductive element on at least one surface of a substrate, the method comprising:
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ejecting a plurality of portions of a flowable conductive material, each of the plurality of portions of the flowable conductive material comprising a volume of at least 500 pL and comprising a plurality of at least partly metallic flakes entrained in a fluid vehicle onto the substrate via at least one pass of a dispensing apparatus configured to perform said ejecting, the ejecting forming the conductive element so as to at least meet or exceed a prescribed ratio between a skin depth of the conductive element and an overall depth thereof at a prescribed frequency; and curing said conductive element and said substrate as a unit so as to drive out at least a portion of said fluid vehicle from said conductive element, and render said conductive element at least substantially permanent.
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Specification