Modification of Polymeric Surfaces with Ultrashort Laser Pulses for the Selective Deposition of Homogeneous Metallic Conductive Layers

Abstract

In recent years, the demand for highly integrated and lightweight components has been rising sharply, especially in plastics processing. One strategy for weight-saving solutions is the development of conductive tracks and layouts directly on the polymer housing parts in order to be able to dispense with the system integration of additional printed circuit boards (PCB). This can be conducted very advantageously and flexibly with laser-based processes for functionalizing polymer surfaces. In this work, a three-step laser-based process for subsequent selective metallization is presented. Conventional injection molded components without special additives serve as the initial substrate. The Laser-Based Selective Activation (LSA) uses picosecond laser pulses to activate the plastic surface to subsequently deposit palladium. The focus is on determining the amount of deposited palladium in correlation to the laser and scan parameters. For the first time, the dependence of the metallization result on the accumulated laser fluence (Facc) is described. The treated polymer parts are characterized using optical and scanning electron microscopy as well as a contact-type profilometer.

Commercial-Grade Dielectrics Surface Metallization by Direct Laser Deposition from Deep Eutectic Solvents

“…In some cases, both of these processes can require laser radiation or may occur simultaneously. For example, selective surface activation induced by laser (SSAIL) is a prominent representative of the first group, and laser scribing is used for dielectric surface activation − to facilitate further selective metallization. On the contrary in reductive laser sintering (rSLS), , lasers are directly employed for the chemical reduction of CuO nanoparticles (NPs), as well as for sintering these particles to form copper patterns .…”

Fabrication of Smart Materials Using Laser Processing: Analysis and Prospects

“…This is beneficial for creating shape memory materials that are activated using laser beam heating [36,37]. Laser processing can be used to activate or introduce functional additives into a material, enhancing its properties [38,39]. For example, laser-doped selective emitter diffusion techniques have become mainstream in solar cell manufacture [40].…”

Fabrication of copper patterns on industrial-used dielectric substrates by direct laser metallization from deep eutectic solvents

“…These works have demonstrated the fabrication of copper, nickel and metal oxide films on the surface of a wide range of polymer materials. Also, the approaches [31,32,33], where the first step is surface activation by laser radiation and then chemical metallization, demonstrated the potential of this technology to fabricate electrochemical sensors and other devices.…”