Electromechanical transducer element, method for producing electromechanical transducer element, liquid ejecting head, liquid ejecting unit, and apparatus for ejecting liquid

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10150293-B2
Application number	US-201715405714-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 13, 2017
Priority date	Jan 22, 2016
Publication date	Dec 11, 2018
Grant date	Dec 11, 2018

Abstract

An electromechanical transducer element includes a first electrode; an electromechanical transducer film stacked on one surface of the first electrode; a second electrode stacked on the electromechanical transducer film; and wiring formed on the second electrode. In an at least one cross section, each of a boundary, on a second electrode side, of the electromechanical transducer film and a boundary, on a side opposite to the electromechanical transducer film, of the second electrode is a curved shape protruding away from the first electrode. In the at least one cross section, each of a film thickness of the electromechanical transducer film and a film thickness of the second electrode becomes thinner toward end portions from a maximum height portion.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An electromechanical transducer element comprising:
a first electrode;
an electromechanical transducer film stacked on one surface of the first electrode;
a second electrode stacked on the electromechanical transducer film; and
wiring formed on the second electrode,
wherein, in an at least one cross section, each of a boundary, on a second electrode side, of the electromechanical transducer film and a boundary, on a side opposite to the electromechanical transducer film, of the second electrode is a curved shape protruding away from the first electrode,
wherein, in the at least one cross section, each of a film thickness of the electromechanical transducer film and a film thickness of the second electrode becomes thinner toward end portions from a maximum height portion,
wherein, in the cross section, the boundary, on the second electrode side, of the electromechanical transducer film is approximated by a formula 1: y=−ax 2 +b where a and b are constants,
wherein, in the cross section, the boundary, on the side opposite to the electromechanical transducer film, of the second electrode is approximated by a formula 2: y=−cx 2 +d where c and d are constants,
wherein, in the formula 1 and the formula 2, x represents a coordinate position in a direction perpendicular to a film thickness direction, when a center of a width Wp of the electromechanical transducer film in the cross section is defined as x=0,
wherein, in the formula 1, y, which is a function of x, represents a height from an end portion of the electromechanical transducer film, and
wherein, in the formula 2, y, which is a function of x, represents a height from an end portion of the second electrode in the cross section.

2. The electromechanical transducer element according to claim 1 ,
wherein, in the formula 1, the a satisfies a relationship of 0.8×{(4Tp)/Wp 2 }<a<1.2×{(4Tp)/Wp 2 } where Tp represents a maximum height of the electromechanical transducer film from the end portion of the electromechanical transducer film in the cross section, and
wherein, in the formula 2, the c satisfies a relationship of 0.8×{(4Te)/We 2 }<c<1.2×{(4Te)/We 2 } where We represents a width of the second electrode in the cross section and Te represents a maximum height of the second electrode from the end portion of the second electrode in the cross section.

3. The electromechanical transducer element according to claim 1 ,
wherein, in the formula 1, the b satisfies a relationship of 0.8Tp<b<1.2Tp where Tp represents a maximum height of the electromechanical transducer film from the end portion of the electromechanical transducer film in the cross section, and
wherein, in the formula 2, the d satisfies a relationship of 0.8{Tm−(4Tp 2 /We 2 )×We 2 +Tp}<d<1.2{Tm−(4Tp 2 /We 2 )× We 2 +Tp} where We represents a width of the second electrode in the cross section and Tm represents a maximum height of the second electrode from the end portion of the electromechanical transducer film in the cross section.

4. The electromechanical transducer element according to claim 1 , a maximum height Tp of the electromechanical transducer film from the end portion of the electromechanical transducer film in the cross section is greater than or equal to 5 μm.

5. The electromechanical transducer element according to claim 1 , the width Wp is greater than or equal to 20 μm and less than or equal to 500 μm.

6. The electromechanical transducer element according to claim 1 , wherein the second electrode is formed on an area except for an outer peripheral portion of the electromechanical transducer film.

7. A liquid ejecting head comprising:
a nozzle configured to eject liquid;
a pressure chamber in communication with the nozzle; and
an ejection driving unit configured to increase a pressure of the liquid in the pressure chamber,
wherein the ejection driving unit includes a vibrating plate constituting a part of a wall of the pressure chamber and the electromechanical transducer element according to claim 1 formed on the vibrating plate.

8. A liquid ejecting unit comprising:
the liquid ejecting head according to claim 7 .

9. The liquid ejecting unit according to claim 8 , wherein at least one of a head tank, configured to store the liquid to be supplied to the liquid ejecting head, a carriage, on which the liquid ejecting head is mounted, a supplying mechanism, configured to supply the liquid to the liquid ejecting head, a maintenance recovery mechanism, configured to maintain and recover the liquid ejecting head, and a main scanning moving mechanism configured to move the liquid ejecting head in a main scanning direction is integrated with the liquid ejecting head.

10. An apparatus for ejecting liquid, the apparatus comprising the liquid ejecting head according to claim 7 .

11. A method for producing an electromechanical transducer element, the electromechanical transducer element including a first electrode; an electromechanical transducer film stacked on one surface of the first electrode; a second electrode stacked on the electromechanical transducer film; and wiring formed on the second electrode, the method comprising:
crystallizing, by repeating a process of applying first liquid to the surface of the first electrode by an ink jet method to form a first application film and a process of heating the first application film, the first application film to form the electromechanical transducer film;
applying second liquid to one surface of the electromechanical transducer film by the ink jet method to form a second application film; and
heating the second application film to form the second electrode;
wherein, in an at least one cross section, each of a boundary, on a second electrode side, of the electromechanical transducer film and a boundary, on a side opposite to the electromechanical transducer film, of the second electrode is a curved shape protruding away from the first electrode, and
wherein, in the at least one cross section, each of a film thickness of the electromechanical transducer film and a film thickness of the second electrode becomes thinner toward end portions from a maximum height portion,
wherein, in the cross section, the boundary, on the second electrode side, of the electromechanical transducer film is approximated by a formula 1: y=−ax 2 +b where a and b are constants,
wherein, in the cross section, the boundary, on the side opposite to the electromechanical transducer film, of the second electrode is approximated by a formula 2: y=−cx+d where c and d are constants,
wherein, in the formula 1 and the formula 2, x represents a coordinate position in a direction perpendicular to a film thickness direction, when a center of a width Wp of the electromechanical transducer film in the cross section is defined as x=0,
wherein, in the formula 1, y, which is a function of x, represents a height from an end portion of the electromechanical transducer film, and
wherein, in the formula 2, y, which is a function of x, represents a height from an end portion of the second electrode in the cross section.

12. The method according to claim 11 , wherein the second application film is formed on an area except for an outer peripheral portion of the surface of the electromechanical transducer film.

13. The method according to claim 12 , further comprising;
forming a self-assembled monolayer film on the surface of the electromechanical transducer film before forming the second application film; and
causing the self-assembled monolayer film to remain in the outer peripheral portion of the surface of the electromechanical transducer film and removing the self-assembled monolayer film

Assignees

• Machida Osamu
• Ishimori Masahiro
• Takeuchi Atsushi
• Abe Shuya
• Ricoh Co Ltd

Inventors

• Machida Osamu
• Ishimori Masahiro
• Takeuchi Atsushi
• Abe Shuya

Classifications

• B41J2/1629

  wet etching · CPC title

• B41J2/1646

  thin film formation by sputtering · CPC title

• H01L41/098

  Electricity · mapped topic

• B41J2/1631

  photolithography · CPC title

• H01L41/0805

  Electricity · mapped topic