Argon plasma sintering of inkjet printed silver tracks on polymer substrates

An alternative and selective sintering method for the fabrication of conductive silver tracks on common polymer substrates is presented, by exposure to low-pressure argon plasma. Inkjet printing has been used to pattern a silver nanoparticle ink. This resulted in conductive features with a resistivity less than one order of magnitude higher than the bulk value of silver without affecting the polymer substrate. This process may be employed in the production of conductive features with low material usage on common polymer substrates in, for example, printed electronics.