Electrical Conductivity of Inkjet Printed Silver Tracks

The work aims to assess the conductivity of Silver tracks printed using a state-of-the-art PixDro LP50 inkjet printer which has the capability to print conductive tracks with width as low as 50mu m. The conductivity of tracks with different dimensions is measured using a Keithley measurement setup. The equivalent resistivity depends on the material, printing technology and geometrical dimensions. Profile measurements indicate a track thickness of around 300nm. The optimal printing resolution appears to be 450dpi, ensuring conductivity for all selected track widths from 50 mu m to 400 mu m. This paper analyses the influence of the layout on the electrical properties with a focus on determining the minimum metal quantity necessary to have tracks with good conductivity.