Functional ceramic pastes and inks

Topic

© Fraunhofer IKTS
Sensor structure of a magnetic encoder.
© Fraunhofer IKTS
Magnetoresistive thick-film sensor with contacting.
© Fraunhofer IKTS
Optical marker based on a luminescent phosphor paste.

Functional pastes form the material-technical basis of thick-film hybrid technology, in which electronic circuits are constructed on a ceramic circuit carrier in an additive manufacturing process using innovative printing techniques. Two different scientific and technical challenges arise from the endeavor to further miniaturize and functionalize such circuits:

  1. The use of digital printing techniques to achieve higher structural resolutions
  2. The development of adapted functional ceramic materials for the integration of additional component functions such as inductors, capacitors or sensors

This requires new types of functional ceramic pastes and inks which, if necessary, can be prepared from powders developed in-house in direct continuation of the technology chain powder synthesis - semi-finished product - component. By processing "home-made" powders into functional pastes and inks, application-specific material properties can be specially adapted and, conversely, individual powder properties can be very precisely taken into account in further processing. If necessary, the technological processes involved in mixing and dispersing the functional ceramic powders into the temporary auxiliary material matrix can be adapted, since it is known what pretreatment the functional ceramic powder has undergone and what its surface condition is like. Against this background, many years of material and technological experience have been gained in the development of

  • Functional ceramic screen printing pastes for the thick-film process
  • Thermally curable magnetic pastes
  • Luminescent phosphor pastes
  • Optical marker pastes
  • Functionally filled polymer pastes
  • Magnetoresistive sensor pastes
  • Fluorescent inks
 

Services offered

 

  • Development of functional ceramic thick-film pastes
  • Development of thermally curable magnetic pastes
  • Development of functional inks
 

Technical equipment

 

  • Process line for preparing functional ceramic pastes and inks
  • Vacuum Dispersing Units
  • Three roll mills
  • Rheometer
  • Various furnaces