Effect of Ag nanowire addition into nanoparticle paste on the conductivity of Ag patterns printed by gravure offset method

This paper focuses on the effect of Ag nanowire addition into a commercial Ag nanopaste and the printability evaluation of the mixed paste by the gravure offset printing methodology. Ag nanowires were synthesized by a modified polyol method, and a small amount of them was added into a commercial metallic paste based on Ag nanoparticles of 50 nm in diameter. Two annealing temperatures were selected for comparison, and electrical conductivity was measured by four point probe method. As a result, the hybrid mixture could be printed by the gravure offset method for patterning fine lines up to 15m width with sharp edges and scarce spreading. The addition of the Ag nanowires was significantly efficient for enhancement of electrical conductivity of the printed lines annealed at a low temperature (150 °C), while the effect was somewhat diluted in case of high temperature annealing (200 °C). The experimental results were discussed with the conduction mechanism in the printed conductive circuits with a schematic description of the electron flows in the printed lines.