The characterization of electrically conductive silver ink patterns on flexible substrates

Electrically conductive silver ink patterns were produced by the screen printing method. Paper, fabrics and plastics were used as the substrate materials. The electrical properties of the samples were characterized by sheet resistance measurement as a function of curing temperature and curing time. The mechanical properties of the samples were characterized by cross hatch adhesion test, bending test and tensile test. Depending on the process parameters and materials, the sheet resistance of the printed conductive patterns varied between 0.04 Omega/square and 0.13 Omega/square. The curing temperature appeared to have a significant effect on the sheet resistance. In all cases sheet resistance decreased as a function of curing temperature. Adhesion between the substrates and the conductive patterns appeared to be good. The result of the bending test indicated that the resistivity of the silver ink patterns increased as a function of the bending cycle process. The results of the tensile and electrical tests showed that with the screen printing method it is possible to produce highly stretchable electrically conductive patterns for practical applications. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.