Effect of Substrates on Femtosecond Laser Pulse-Induced Reductive Sintering of Cobalt Oxide Nanoparticles

Direct writing of cobalt/cobalt oxide composites has attracted attention for its potential use in catalysts and detectors in microsensors. In this study, cobalt-based composite patterns were selectively formed on glass, polyethylene naphthalate (PEN), and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrates via the femtosecond laser reductive sintering of Co3O4 nanoparticles in an ambient atmosphere. A Co3O4 nanoparticle ink, including the nanoparticles, ethylene glycol as a reductant, and polyvinylpyrrolidone as a dispersant, was spin-coated onto the substrates. Near-infrared femtosecond laser pulses were then focused and scanned across the ink films to form the patterns. The non-sintered nanoparticles were subsequently removed from the substrate. The resulting sintered patterns were found to be made up of Co/CoO composites on the glass substrates, utilizing various pulse energies and scanning speeds, and the Co/CoO/Co3O4 composites were fabricated on both the PEN and PET substrates. These results suggest that the polymer substrates with low thermal resistance react with the ink during the reductive sintering process and oxidize the patterns more easily compared with the patterns on the glass substrates. Such a direct writing technique of cobalt/cobalt oxide composites is useful for the spatially selective printing of catalysts and detectors in functional microsensors.

Automated summary

The study demonstrates the direct writing of cobalt/cobalt oxide composites using femtosecond laser reductive sintering of Co3O4 nanoparticles on different substrates. The results show that polymer substrates affect the oxidation of the patterns, and this direct writing technique is promising for the application of catalysts and detectors in microsensors.