Highly stretchable interconnect devices and systems

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016170447-A1
Application number	US-201514839933-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Aug 29, 2015
Priority date	Dec 10, 2014
Publication date	Jun 16, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

Techniques for forming highly stretchable electronic interconnect devices are disclosed herein. In one embodiment, a method of fabricating an electronic interconnect device includes forming a layer of an adhesion material onto a surface of a substrate material capable of elastic and/or plastic deformation. The formed layer of the adhesion material has a plurality of adhesion material portions separated from one another on the surface of the substrate material. The method also includes depositing a layer of an interconnect material onto the formed layer of the adhesion material. The deposited interconnect material has regions that are not bonded or loosely bonded to corresponding regions of the substrate material, such that the interconnect material may be deformed more than the adhesion material attached to the substrate material. In certain embodiments, the interconnect material can also include a plurality of wrinkles on a surface facing away from the substrate material.

First claim

I/we claim:

1 . An electronic interconnect device, comprising:
a substrate material; an interconnect material proximate the substrate material along a first direction, the interconnect material including an elastic-plastic metal; and an adhesion material interposed between the substrate material and the interconnect material, wherein:
the adhesion material is bonded with the substrate material at a first interface and bonded with the interconnect material at a second interface that is spaced apart from the first interface along the first direction; and
the adhesion material is discontinuous along a second direction generally perpendicular to the first direction.

2 . The electronic interconnect device of claim 1 wherein the adhesion material include a plurality of adhesion material portions each separated from other neighboring adhesion material portions along the second direction.

3 . The electronic interconnect device of claim 1 wherein the adhesion material include a plurality of adhesion material portions each separated from and abutting other neighboring adhesion material portions along the second direction.

4 . The electronic interconnect device of claim 1 wherein the adhesion material include a plurality of adhesion material portions each separated from other neighboring adhesion material portions by a separation distance along the second direction.

5 . The electronic interconnect device of claim 1 wherein the adhesion material include a plurality of adhesion material portions each separated from other neighboring adhesion material portions, and wherein the adhesion material portions are arranged randomly along the second direction.

6 . The electronic interconnect device of claim 1 wherein the adhesion material include a plurality of adhesion material portions each separated from other neighboring adhesion material portions, and wherein the adhesion material portions are arranged randomly along the second direction.

7 . The electronic interconnect device of claim 1 wherein:
the substrate material includes a polymeric material capable of elastic and/or plastic deformation;
the adhesion material includes chromium (Cr), titanium (Ti), aluminum (Al), nickel (Ni), tantalum (Ta), or an oxide or nitride thereof; and
the interconnect material includes indium (In), tin (Sn), gold (Au) or copper (Cu).

8 . The electronic interconnect device of claim 1 wherein the interconnect material includes regions not bonded to corresponding regions of the substrate material.

9 . The electronic interconnect device of claim 1 wherein the interconnect material includes regions loosely bonded to corresponding regions of the substrate material such that the regions of the interconnect material are capable of relative movement with respect to the corresponding regions of the substrate material without being delaminated from the adhesion material.

10 . An electronic interconnect device, comprising:
a substrate material; an interconnect material proximate the substrate material, the interconnect material including an elastic-plastic metal and having a first surface proximate the substrate material and a second surface opposite the first surface, wherein the interconnect material includes a plurality of wrinkles on the second surface; and an adhesion material interposed between the substrate material and the interconnect material, wherein:
the adhesion material is bonded with the substrate material at a first interface and bonded with the interconnect material at a second interface; and
the interconnect material includes regions at the second interface that are not bonded or loosely bonded to the corresponding regions of the substrate material at the first interface such that the regions of the interconnect material are capable of relative movement with respect to the corresponding regions of the substrate material without being delaminated from the adhesion material.

11 . The electronic interconnect device of claim 10 wherein:
the interconnect material is spaced apart from the substrate material along a first direction; and
the regions of the interconnect material at the second interface are capable of relative movement with respect to the corresponding regions of the substrate material at the first interface along a second direction generally perpendicular to the first direction.

12 . The electronic interconnect device of claim 10 wherein:
the interconnect material is spaced apart from the substrate material along a direction; and
the regions of the interconnect material at the second interface are capable of relative movement with respect to the corresponding regions of the substrate material at the first interface along a plane generally perpendicular to the direction.

13 . The electronic interconnect device of claim 10 wherein the adhesion material includes a plurality of adhesion material portions individually bonded to the substrate material at the first interface and to the interconnect material at the second interface, the adhesion material portions being capable of relative movement with respect to one another.

14 . The electronic interconnect device of claim 10 wherein the adhesion material includes a plurality of adhesion material portions individually bonded to the substrate material at the first interface and to the interconnect material at the second interface, the adhesion material portions are separated from one another by a distance.

15 . The electronic interconnect device of claim 10 wherein the adhesion material has a thickness of about 3 nm to about 5 nm, and wherein the interconnect material has a thickness of about 100 nm to about 20 μm.

16 . The electronic interconnect device of claim 10 wherein:
the substrate material includes a polymeric material;
the adhesion material includes chromium (Cr) or an oxide thereof; and
the interconnect material includes Indium (In).

17 . A method of fabricating an electronic interconnect device, the method comprising:
forming a layer of an adhesion material onto a surface of a substrate material capable of elastic and/or plastic deformation, the formed layer of the adhesion material having a plurality of adhesion material portions separated from one another on the surface of the substrate material; and depositing a layer of an interconnect material onto the formed layer of the adhesion material, the deposited interconnect material having regions that are not bonded or loosely bonded to corresponding regions of the substrate material such that such that the interconnect material is more deformable than the adhesion material attached to the substrate material.

18 . The method of claim 17 wherein forming the layer of the adhesion material includes:
depositing the layer of the adhesion material onto the surface of the substrate material; and
fracturing the deposited layer of the adhesion material into the plurality of adhesion material regions via thermal and/or mechanical stress.

19 . The method of claim 17 wherein forming the layer of the adhesion material includes:
placing a template onto the surface of the substrate material, the template including a pattern having a plurality of separated apertures; and
depositing the layer of the adhesion material onto the surface of the substrate material with the placed template, thereby forming a plurality of adhesion material regions separated from one another.

20 . The method of claim 17 wherein:
forming the layer of the adhesion material includes:
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Assignees

• Univ Washington State

Inventors

• Dutta Lndranath
• Panat Rahul

Classifications

• G06F1/163 Primary

  Wearable computers, e.g. on a belt · CPC title

• H05K1/0283

  Stretchable printed circuits · CPC title

• H05K1/09

  Use of materials for the {conductive, e.g. } metallic pattern · CPC title

• H05K2201/0162

  Silicon containing polymer, e.g. silicone · CPC title

• H05K3/22

  Secondary treatment of printed circuits {(H05K3/1283 takes precedence; embedding circuits in grooves by pressure H05K3/107)} · CPC title