Improving the electrical and thermal properties of conductive adhesives is essential for the fabrication of compact microelectronic and optoelectronic power devices. Here we report on the addition of a commercially available conductive resin with double-wall carbon nanotubes and graphene nanoplatelets that yields simultaneously improved thermal and electrical conductivity. Using isopropanol as a common solvent for the debundling of nanotubes, exfoliation of graphene, and dispersion of the carbon nanostructures in the epoxy resin, we obtain a nanostructured conducting adhesive with thermal conductivity of similar to 12 W/mK and resistivity down to 30 mu Omega cm at very small loadings (1% w/w for nanotubes and 0.01% w/w for graphene). The low filler content allows one to keep almost unchanged the glass-transition temperature, the viscosity, and the curing parameters. Die shear measurements show that the nanostructured resins fulfill the MIL-STD-883 requirements when bonding gold-metalized SMD components, even after repeated thermal cycling. The same procedure has been validated on a high-conductivity resin characterized by a higher-viscosity, on which we have doubled the thermal conductivity and quadrupled the electrical conductivity. Graphene yields better performances with respect to nanotubes in terms of conductivity and filler quantity needed to improve the resin. We have finally applied the nanostructured resins to bond GaN-based high electron-mobility transistors in power-amplifier circuits. We observe a decrease of the GaN peak and average temperatures of, respectively, similar to 30 degrees C and similar to 10 degrees C, with respect to the pristine resin. The obtained results are important for the fabrication of advanced packaging materials in power electronic and microwave applications and fit the technological roadmap for CNTs, graphene, and hybrid systems.

Double-Wall Nanotubes and Graphene Nanoplatelets for Hybrid Conductive Adhesives with Enhanced Thermal and Electrical Conductivity

Messina Elena;Leone Nancy;Foti Antonino;Di Marco Gaetano;Riccucci Cristina;Di Carlo Gabriella;D'Andrea Cristiano;Fazio Barbara;Marago Onofrio Maria;Vasi Cirino;Ingo Gabriel Maria;Gucciardi Pietro Giuseppe
2016

Abstract

Improving the electrical and thermal properties of conductive adhesives is essential for the fabrication of compact microelectronic and optoelectronic power devices. Here we report on the addition of a commercially available conductive resin with double-wall carbon nanotubes and graphene nanoplatelets that yields simultaneously improved thermal and electrical conductivity. Using isopropanol as a common solvent for the debundling of nanotubes, exfoliation of graphene, and dispersion of the carbon nanostructures in the epoxy resin, we obtain a nanostructured conducting adhesive with thermal conductivity of similar to 12 W/mK and resistivity down to 30 mu Omega cm at very small loadings (1% w/w for nanotubes and 0.01% w/w for graphene). The low filler content allows one to keep almost unchanged the glass-transition temperature, the viscosity, and the curing parameters. Die shear measurements show that the nanostructured resins fulfill the MIL-STD-883 requirements when bonding gold-metalized SMD components, even after repeated thermal cycling. The same procedure has been validated on a high-conductivity resin characterized by a higher-viscosity, on which we have doubled the thermal conductivity and quadrupled the electrical conductivity. Graphene yields better performances with respect to nanotubes in terms of conductivity and filler quantity needed to improve the resin. We have finally applied the nanostructured resins to bond GaN-based high electron-mobility transistors in power-amplifier circuits. We observe a decrease of the GaN peak and average temperatures of, respectively, similar to 30 degrees C and similar to 10 degrees C, with respect to the pristine resin. The obtained results are important for the fabrication of advanced packaging materials in power electronic and microwave applications and fit the technological roadmap for CNTs, graphene, and hybrid systems.
2016
Istituto per i Processi Chimico-Fisici - IPCF
Istituto per lo Studio dei Materiali Nanostrutturati - ISMN
graphene
nanotubes
liquid-phase exfoliation
thermal interface materials
conductive epoxy
thermal conductivity
electrical conductivity
chip bonding
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14243/324623
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