Multilayer electronic device having improved connectivity and method for making the same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10840018-B2
Application number	US-201816166506-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 22, 2018
Priority date	Oct 23, 2017
Publication date	Nov 17, 2020
Grant date	Nov 17, 2020

Abstract

A method is disclosed for making a multilayer electronic device. The method includes placing a screen printing mask on a layer of support material and printing a conductive pattern on a layer of support material using the screen printing mask. The conductive pattern includes a plurality of electrode shapes including respective central enlarged portions. The method includes cutting the layer of support material and conductive pattern along a plurality of cutting lines intersecting the central enlarged portions such that at least one of the plurality of electrode shapes is divided into a pair of electrodes along a cutting width. The cutting width is indicative of a cutting accuracy associated with at least one of the cutting lines.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of making a multilayer electronic device, the method comprising:
placing a screen printing mask on a layer of support material;
printing a conductive pattern on a layer of support material using the screen printing mask, the conductive pattern including a plurality of electrode shapes including respective central enlarged portions; and
cutting the layer of support material and conductive pattern along a plurality of cutting lines intersecting the central enlarged portions such that at least one of the plurality of electrode shapes is divided into a pair of electrodes along a cutting width, and wherein the cutting width of the at least one of the plurality of electrode shapes is indicative of a cutting accuracy associated with at least one of the cutting lines; and
determining the cutting accuracy based on the cutting width of the at least one of the plurality of electrode shapes, wherein the cutting accuracy is the longitudinal offset between the at least one of the cutting lines and the desired cutting location.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein printing the conductive pattern includes applying an electrode material through a plurality of openings in the screen printing mask, the plurality of openings including respective central enlarged sections.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein:
printing the conductive pattern comprises forming the plurality of electrode shapes such that the plurality of electrode shapes have respective lengths extending in a longitudinal direction; and
cutting the layer of support material and conductive pattern comprises cutting along the plurality of cutting lines that extend substantially in a lateral direction that is perpendicular to the longitudinal direction.

4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising measuring the cutting width of the at least one of the plurality of electrode shapes.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining the cutting accuracy comprises referencing a width profile that relates the cutting width with the longitudinal offset between the at least one of the cutting lines and the desired cutting location.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein, printing the conductive pattern comprises forming the central enlarged portions of the plurality of electrode shapes such that the central enlarged portions include respective edge portions that slope towards a centerline of the at least one of the plurality of electrode shapes at an angle with respect to the longitudinal direction that is greater than 0 degrees and less than 90 degrees.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein cutting the layer of support material along the plurality of cutting lines comprises cutting the at least one of the plurality of electrode shapes substantially along a lateral centerline of the central enlarged portion.

8. The method of claim 1 , further comprising forming a first terminal electrically connected with one of the pair of electrodes and a second terminal electrically connected with the other of the pair of electrodes.

9. A multilayer electronic device comprising a plurality of layers, the plurality of layers comprising electrodes, and at least one of the plurality of electrodes comprising:
a main portion extending in a longitudinal direction, the main portion having a main width in a lateral direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction; and
a base portion having a maximum base width greater than the main width, the base portion having a width profile in the longitudinal direction, wherein the width profile is sloped at one or more angles with respect to the longitudinal direction, the one or more angles each being greater than 0 degrees and less than 90 degrees along the width profile from the main portion to an edge of the respective layer of the plurality of layers that comprises the at least one of the plurality of electrodes.

10. The multilayer electronic device of claim 9 , wherein the flat region has a length in the longitudinal direction that is less than 200 μm.

11. The multilayer electronic device of claim 9 , wherein the flat region has a length in the longitudinal direction and the multilayer electronic device has an overall length in the longitudinal direction, and wherein a ratio of the length of the overall length of multilayer electronic device to the length of the flat region is greater than about 5.

12. The multilayer electronic device of claim 9 , wherein the base portion has a length in the longitudinal direction that is less than about 300 μm.

13. The multilayer electronic device of claim 9 , wherein the multilayer electronic device has an overall length in the longitudinal direction and the base portion has a length in the longitudinal direction, and wherein a ratio of the length of the overall length of multilayer electronic device to the length of the base portion is greater than about 5.

14. The multilayer electronic device of claim 9 , wherein the portion of the width profile that is sloped has a length in the longitudinal direction that is less than about 200 μm.

15. The multilayer electronic device of claim 9 , wherein the width profile is sloped at a single constant angle with respect to the longitudinal direction between the main width at the main portion and the edge of the respective layer.

16. A multilayer electronic device comprising a plurality of layers, the plurality of layers comprising electrodes, and at least one of the plurality of electrodes comprising:
a main portion extending in a longitudinal direction, the main portion having a main width in a lateral direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction; and
a base portion having a maximum base width greater than the main width, the base portion having a width profile in the longitudinal direction, wherein at least a portion of the width profile is sloped at an angle with respect to the longitudinal direction, greater than 0 degrees and less than 90 degrees, wherein the portion of the width profile that is sloped has a length in the longitudinal direction that is less than about 200 μm.

Assignees

• Avx Corp

Inventors

• Berolini Marianne
• Kirk Michael
• Ravindranathan Palaniappan

Classifications

• H01G4/30 Primary

  Stacked capacitors (H01G4/33 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H01G4/12

  Ceramic dielectrics {(H01G4/085 takes precedence)} · CPC title

• H01G4/012 Primary

  Form of non-self-supporting electrodes · CPC title

• H05K3/3442

  having edge contacts, e.g. leadless chip capacitors, chip carriers · CPC title

• H01G2/065

  for surface mounting, e.g. chip capacitors · CPC title