Producing an apparatus by covering an electronic component with a conformal coating containing metal nanoparticles

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10479897-B2
Application number	US-201414156635-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 16, 2014
Priority date	Jan 16, 2014
Publication date	Nov 19, 2019
Grant date	Nov 19, 2019

Abstract

A method for producing an apparatus includes covering an electronic component with a conformal coating that includes a polymer and metal nanoparticles blended with the polymer. The electronic component is mounted on a substrate and electrically connected by metal conductors. The conformal coating overlies the metal conductors.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for producing an apparatus, comprising the steps of:
providing an electronic component mounted on a substrate and electrically connected by metal conductors;
applying a conformal coating composition in an at least partially uncured state over the electronic component and the substrate, wherein the conformal coating composition comprises a polymer and metal nanoparticles blended with the polymer, wherein the metal nanoparticles have an average diameter within the range of 5 nm to 200 nm, and wherein the concentration of the metal nanoparticles in the conformal coating composition is approximately 5 wt % of the conformal coating and provides a level of electrical conduction sufficiently below the electric conducting percolation threshold to avoid shorting of the electronic component and the substrate; and
curing the conformal coating composition applied over the electronic component and the substrate to produce a conformal coating that overlies the metal conductors.

2. The method as recited in claim 1 , wherein the step of applying a conformal coating composition in an at least partially uncured state over the electronic component and the substrate includes the step of applying the conformal coating composition by dipping, spraying, spin-coating, casting, brushing, rolling, and/or syringe.

3. The method as recited in claim 1 , wherein the electronic component is a gate resistor of a resistor network array, and wherein the metal conductors comprise an inner silver layer of the gate resistor.

4. The method as recited in claim 1 , wherein the metal nanoparticles are selected from a group consisting of copper nanoparticles and silver nanoparticles; and combinations thereof.

5. The method as recited in claim 1 , wherein the metal nanoparticles include copper nanoparticles.

6. The method as recited in claim 1 , wherein the metal nanoparticles have an average diameter of approximately 100 nm.

7. The method as recited in claim 1 , wherein the polymer includes a room temperature-vulcanizable (RTV) silicone rubber composition.

8. A method for producing an apparatus, comprising the steps of:
providing an electronic component mounted on a substrate and electrically connected by metal conductors;
applying a conformal coating composition in an at least partially uncured state over the electronic component and the substrate, wherein the conformal coating composition comprises a polymer and copper nanoparticles blended with the polymer, wherein the copper nanoparticles have an average diameter of approximately 100 nm, and wherein the copper nanoparticles comprise approximately 5 wt % of the conformal coating composition; and
curing the conformal coating composition applied over the electronic component and the substrate to produce a conformal coating that overlies the metal conductors.

Assignees

• IBM

Inventors

• Boday Dylan J
• Kuczynski Joseph
• Wertz Jason T
• Zhang Jing

Classifications

• H05K1/181

  associated with surface mounted components · CPC title

• H05K3/284

  for encapsulating mounted components (H05K1/185 takes precedence) · CPC title

• C08K2003/085

  Copper · CPC title

• C09D5/10 Primary

  containing metal dust · CPC title

• H05K2201/10022

  Non-printed resistor · CPC title