Method for optimizing intense pulsed light sintering process

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for optimizing an intense pulsed light sintering process. The method comprises the following steps: constructing a highly accurate numerical model; preliminarily set parameters are input into the constructed numerical model, an iterative optimization strategy is adopted to simulate the parameters, and a simulation result is obtained; analyzing key indexes in simulation results under different process conditions by finite element analysis software; and adjusting parameters to obtain a parameter combination which ensures sufficient sintering and does not cause damage or excessive deformation of the base material. The method has the beneficial effects that heat conduction, temperature distribution, material response, stress distribution (thermal stress evolution) and possible deformation conditions in the material internal sintering process under different process conditions (such as pulse intensity, frequency, duration and the like) are accurately simulated and predicted; the material behavior in the sintering process can be predicted more accurately, rapid optimization of process parameters is achieved, and the production efficiency and the product quality are improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention belongs to the technical field of photon sintering, and in particular relates to a method for optimizing an intense pulse light sintering process. Background Art

[0002] Photonic sintering technology uses flash lamp pulse light to process the substrate, and quickly heats up the target object through radiant heat transfer; photonic sintering technology can achieve instantaneous high-temperature processing on low-temperature substrates to avoid damage to the substrate, while shortening the processing time from several minutes to several milliseconds. Photonic sintering technology can process a variety of materials including nano-micron metal particle inks, non-metallic and semiconductor inks, by selectively heating thin film portions. Photonic sintering has become a transformative process in the manufacture of printed electronics, allowing the use of inexpensive and flexible substrates to replace traditional materials while shortening processing time and maintaining a smaller machine footprint. Photonic sintering technology reduces the cost of material heat treatment, improves production efficiency, and provides a way to incorporate more advanced materials and functions into future printed electronic products. It is widely used in fields such as printed electronics technology and flexible electronics.

[0003] However, in actual use, the exploration of the intense pulsed light sintering process for different substrates (such as PET, PI, etc.) and different slurry systems mainly relies on experience, which wastes a lot of time in the sintering process and makes it difficult to ensure the consistency and optimality of the process. Summary of the invention

[0004] The purpose of the present invention is to overcome the deficiencies in the prior art and provide a method for optimizing the intense pulsed light sintering process.

[0005] The method for optimizing the intense pulsed light sintering process comprises the following steps:

[0006] Step 1: Build a highly accurate numerical model;

[0007] Step 2: Input the preliminarily set parameters into the constructed numerical model, simulate the parameters using an iterative optimization strategy, and obtain simulation results;

[0008] Step 3: Finite element analysis software analyzes key indicators in simulation results under different process conditions (such as pulse intensity, frequency, duration, etc.);

[0009] Step 4: Adjust the parameters according to the key indicators analyzed in step 3, and continue to simulate the adjusted parameters using an iterative optimization strategy until a parameter combination is obtained that ensures sufficient sintering without causing damage to the substrate or excessive deformation.

[0010] Preferably, the parameters preliminarily set in step 2 include: physical property parameters of the substrate and the slurry, geometric shape parameters, light source characteristic parameters, and thermal-mechanical coupling effect parameters during the sintering process.

[0011] Preferably, the physical property parameters include thermal conductivity, specific heat capacity and thermal expansion coefficient; the light source characteristic parameters include spectral distribution, pulse width and energy density.

[0012] Preferably, the key indicators in the simulation results in step 3 include: uniformity of temperature distribution, whether the maximum temperature exceeds the tolerance limit of the material, and the thermal stress concentration area.

[0013] Preferably, in step 4, adjusting the parameters according to the key indicators analyzed in step 3 specifically includes: increasing or decreasing the pulse energy, adjusting the pulse interval, or changing the focus position of the light source.

[0014] The beneficial effects of the present invention are:

[0015] The method of the present invention proposes a method for optimizing the intense pulse sintering process using finite element analysis (FEA) software, which aims to accurately simulate and predict the heat conduction, temperature distribution, material response and stress distribution (thermal stress evolution) and possible deformation conditions in the material's internal sintering process under different process conditions (such as pulse intensity, frequency, duration, etc.), thereby helping to more accurately predict the material behavior in the sintering process, achieve rapid optimization of process parameters, and improve production efficiency and product quality.

[0016] The method of the present invention can significantly reduce the cost of trial and error, accelerate the product development cycle, and ensure the consistency and reliability of the product; the method of the present invention also promotes the application expansion of photon sintering technology in more fields (such as wearable devices, smart packaging, flexible display screens, etc.). BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] Figure 1 Optimization process for simulation calculations using finite element analysis software. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0018] The present invention is further described below in conjunction with embodiments. The description of the following embodiments is only used to help understand the present invention. It should be noted that for ordinary persons in the art, without departing from the principle of the present invention, the present invention can also be modified in some ways, and these improvements and modifications also fall within the scope of protection of the claims of the present invention.

[0019] As an embodiment, taking photon sintering copper paste as an example, a method for optimizing the intense pulsed light sintering process includes the following steps:

[0020] Step 1: Select PET (polyethylene terephthalate) or PI (polyimide) as the substrate and build a highly accurate numerical model;

[0021] Step 2: Input the preliminarily set parameters and the thermal-mechanical coupling effect parameters during sintering into the constructed numerical model, consider the thermal-mechanical coupling effect (i.e., material stress and deformation caused by temperature change) in the model, and use an iterative optimization strategy to simulate the parameters to obtain simulation results;

[0022] The parameters initially set include: physical property parameters such as thermal conductivity, specific heat capacity, thermal expansion coefficient, etc. of PET (polyethylene terephthalate) or PI (polyimide);

[0023] Select copper paste or input the required physical properties of the paste (thermal conductivity, melting point, thermal expansion coefficient, etc.) into the constructed numerical model;

[0024] Define the geometric shapes of the substrate and slurry according to actual product requirements. For example, the substrate can be defined as a rectangular thin plate and the slurry can be defined as a thin film coated on the surface of the substrate.

[0025] Light source characteristic setting: input the spectral distribution, pulse width, energy density and other parameters of the flash pulse light. These parameters will directly affect the heat conduction and material response during the sintering process;

[0026] Step 3: Figure 1 As shown, based on the preliminarily set process parameters (such as pulse intensity, frequency, duration, etc.), the key indicators (uniformity of temperature distribution, whether the maximum temperature exceeds the tolerance limit of the material, and the thermal stress concentration area) in the simulation results under different process conditions (such as pulse intensity, frequency, duration, etc.) are analyzed using finite element analysis software;

[0027] Step 4: Adjust the parameters according to the key indicators analyzed in step 3. For example, if the temperature distribution is uneven, try to increase the pulse energy or adjust the focus position of the light source. If the maximum temperature exceeds the tolerance limit of the material, reduce the pulse intensity or increase the pulse interval. Use an iterative optimization strategy to continue simulating the adjusted parameters and repeat the above steps until a parameter combination is obtained that ensures sufficient sintering without causing damage to the substrate or excessive deformation.

[0028] Experimental verification:

[0029] Use the optimized process parameters to conduct actual sintering experiments to verify the accuracy of the simulation results;

[0030] The experimental results are compared with the simulation results to evaluate the effectiveness of the optimization method.

Claims

1. A method for optimizing an intense pulsed light sintering process, characterized in that: The following steps are involved: Step 1: construct a numerical model; Step 2: Input the preliminarily set parameters into the constructed numerical model, simulate the parameters using an iterative optimization strategy, and obtain simulation results; Step 3: Finite element analysis software analyzes key indicators in simulation results under different process conditions; Step 4: Adjust the parameters according to the key indicators analyzed in step 3, and continue to simulate the adjusted parameters using an iterative optimization strategy until a parameter combination is obtained that ensures sufficient sintering without causing damage to the substrate or excessive deformation.

2. The method for optimizing the intense pulsed light sintering process according to claim 1, characterized in that: The parameters preliminarily set in step 2 include: physical property parameters, geometric shape parameters, light source characteristic parameters, and thermal-mechanical coupling effect parameters during the sintering process.

3. The method for optimizing the intense pulsed light sintering process according to claim 2, characterized in that: Physical property parameters include thermal conductivity, specific heat capacity and thermal expansion coefficient; light source characteristic parameters include spectral distribution, pulse width and energy density.

4. The method for optimizing the intense pulsed light sintering process according to claim 1, characterized in that: The key indicators in the simulation results in step 3 include: uniformity of temperature distribution, whether the maximum temperature exceeds the tolerance limit of the material, and areas of thermal stress concentration.

5. The method for optimizing the intense pulsed light sintering process according to claim 4, characterized in that: In step 4, the parameters are adjusted according to the key indicators analyzed in step 3, specifically: increasing or decreasing the pulse energy, adjusting the pulse interval or changing the focus position of the light source.

Images