Glass-Free Outer Electrodes for Crack-Resistant Chip Ceramic Components
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Chip ceramic electronic components face cracking issues due to stress from substrate deflection and solder reflow processes, which can lead to electrical short-circuits, and existing resin electrodes have high electrical resistance.
Innovation Solution
A glass-free sintered layer is formed using a conductive paste with copper and thermosetting resin, subjected to heat treatment above 400°C to reduce electrical resistance and absorb stress, preventing ceramic body cracking.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a resin electrode containing thermosetting resin and conductive metal powder is used as the outer electrode, then the ceramic body is protected from cracking due to stress absorption through delamination or resin fracture, but the electrical resistance becomes relatively high resulting in high equivalent series resistance (ESR)
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a composite material consisting of glass-free conductive paste containing metal powder (such as silver, copper, or aluminum) and organic vehicle, which is then sintered to form a glass-free sintered layer. This composite structure provides both mechanical stress absorption capability and low electrical resistance, resolving the contradiction between crack prevention and energy loss.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the chemical composition parameters by eliminating glass from the conductive paste formulation and using specific metal powders with controlled particle sizes and distributions. The sintering process parameters (temperature, atmosphere, time) are also optimized to achieve a dense glass-free sintered layer with low resistance while maintaining stress absorption properties.
2Reliability
If a glass-containing sintered layer is formed as an underlying layer to protect the ceramic body, then stress absorption and crack prevention are achieved, but the electrical resistance increases due to the presence of glass on the surface layer
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the harmful glass component from the conductive paste formulation while retaining the beneficial stress absorption and adhesion properties. By using glass-free conductive paste, the patent eliminates the source of high electrical resistance while maintaining the protective function against ceramic body cracking.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies glass-free conductive paste specifically at the outer electrode position where low electrical resistance is critical for electrical connection. The sintered layer formed from this paste provides localized low-resistance conduction path while the overall structure maintains stress absorption capabilities.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The glass-free sintered layer reduces equivalent series resistance (ESR) and effectively absorbs stress, preventing ceramic body cracking while maintaining electrical connectivity.
Implementation Method 1
subjected to heat treatment above 400°C to reduce electrical resistance and absorb stress, preventing ceramic body cracking
Implementation Method 2
subjected to heat treatment above 400°C to reduce electrical resistance
Implementation Method 3
subjected to heat treatment above 400°C
Data Source
AI summary
A method for manufacturing a chip ceramic electronic component that includes an outer electrode including a glass-free sintered layer including no glass is provided. A glass-free conductive paste including a copper-containing metal powder and a thermosetting resin, and not including glass, is applied to cover a portion of a surface of a ceramic body. Then the ceramic body to which the glass-free conductive paste has been applied is subjected to a heat treatment at a temperature higher than or equal to a temperature about 400° C. higher than the curing temperature of the thermosetting resin. By the heat treatment, the thermosetting resin is thermally decomposed or burned and thus the thermosetting resin does not remain, and the metal powder is sintered to form a unified sintered metal body.