Production method of thermoelectric converter, production method of electronic device equipped with thermoelectric converter, and thermoelectric converter

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9680079-B2
Application number	US-201314404705-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 26, 2013
Priority date	May 30, 2012
Publication date	Jun 13, 2017
Grant date	Jun 13, 2017

Abstract

As the first conductive paste, a paste is used which is made by adding an organic solvent to powder of alloy in which a plurality of atoms keep a given crystal structure constant. As the second conductive paste, a paste is used which is made by adding an organic solvent to powder of metal different in kind from the alloy. In a step of making the stack body, cavities are formed in the stack body. In a uniting step, the cavities work to facilitate flow of thermoplastic resin to absorb pressure acting in a direction different from a direction in which pressure exerted on the first conductive paste to unite the stack body, thereby resulting in an increase in pressure for the uniting to solid-state sinter the first conductive paste to make the first layer-to-layer connecting member.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method of producing a thermoelectric converter which performs:
a step of preparing an insulating base which contains thermoplastic resin and has formed therein a plurality of first and second via holes extending through a thickness thereof, the first via holes being filled with a first conductive paste, the second via holes being filled with a second conductive paste;
a step of placing a front side protective member on a front surface of said insulating base and also placing a reverse side protective member on a reverse surface of said insulating base to make a stack body, the front side protective member having front side conductive layers contacting given ones of the first and second conductive pastes, the reverse side protective member having reverse side conductive layers contacting given ones of the first and second conductive pastes; and
a uniting step of pressing the stack body in a stacking direction while heating the stack body to make first and second layer-to-layer connecting members of the first and second conductive pastes and also to electrically connect the first and second layer-to-layer connecting members with said front side conductive layers and said reverse side conductive layers,
in that a paste made by adding an organic solvent to powder of alloy in which a plurality of atoms keep a given crystal structure is used as the first conductive paste,
in that a paste made by adding an organic solvent to powder of metal which is different in kind from said alloy is used as the second conductive paste,
in that in the step of making the stack body, cavities are formed inside the stack body, and
in that in the uniting step, said cavities work to facilitate flow of said thermoplastic resin to absorb pressure acting on said first conductive pastes in a direction different from the stacking direction, thereby increasing pressure applied to the stack body in the stacking direction to solid-state sinter the first conductive pastes to make the first layer-to-layer connecting members.

2. A method of producing a thermoelectric converter as set forth in claim 1 , wherein the prior to the step of making said stack body, through holes are formed in said insulating base.

3. A method of producing a thermoelectric converter as set forth in claim 2 , wherein a step of forming the through holes, the through holes are made to be disposed at regular intervals away from each other in a circumferential direction of a circle concentric with each of the first and second via holes.

4. A method of producing a thermoelectric converter as set forth in claim 2 , wherein the prior to the step of making said stack body, square closed loop like grooves are formed so that one of either of the first via holes or the second via holes lies within each of the loop like grooves.

5. A method of producing a thermoelectric converter as set forth in claim 1 , wherein the step of making said stack body uses said front side protective member and the reverse side protective member on which at least one of the front side conductive layers and the reverse side conductive layers has a recess formed in a portion thereof other than a portion which is in contact with the first or second conductive paste.

6. A method of producing a thermoelectric converter as set forth in claim 1 , wherein said insulating base, what includes a porous member having a cavity disposed therein is used.

7. A method of producing a thermoelectric converter as set forth in claim 1 , wherein said insulating base, which is porous and has a hole formed therein is used.

8. A method of producing a thermoelectric converter as set forth in claim 7 , wherein the step of preparing said insulating base executes the steps of:
forming said first via holes in said insulating base;
applying said first conductive paste into the first via holes;
forming the second via holes in said insulating base after the first conductive paste is put; and
applying said second conductive paste into the second via holes,
in that said second conductive paste is made of an organic solvent which is lower in melting point than that of said first conductive paste, and
in that the step of applying the second conductive paste is performed while said insulating base is being kept at a temperature which is lower than the melting point of the organic solvent contained in the first conductive paste and higher than the melting point of the organic solvent contained in the second conductive paste.

9. A method of producing a thermoelectric converter as set forth in claim 1 , wherein the step of preparing said insulating base executes the steps of:
forming said first via holes and the second via holes simultaneously in said insulating base;
placing a mask on the front surface of the insulating base, the mask having openings formed in areas thereof coinciding with the first via holes;
applying said first conductive paste into the first via holes from the front surface of the insulating base;
removing the mask; and
applying the second conductive paste into the second via holes,
in that said second conductive paste is made of an organic solvent which is lower in melting point than that of said first conductive paste, and
in that the step of applying the second conductive paste is performed while said insulating base is being kept at a temperature which is lower than the melting point of the organic solvent contained in the first conductive paste and higher than the melting point of the organic solvent contained in the second conductive paste.

10. A method of producing a thermoelectric converter as set forth in claim 1 , wherein as the insulating base, a stack of a thermosetting resin film, a thermoplastic resin film, and a thermosetting rein film ( 10 e ) is used.

11. A method of producing a thermoelectric converter as set forth in claim 1 , wherein the step of preparing said insulating base, an object in which the first and second via holes are formed is prepared,
in that in the step of making said stack body, when the first conductive paste put in each of the first via holes and the second conductive paste put in an adjacent one of the second via holes is defined as a pair, said front side protective member is placed on
the front surface of said insulating base with the first and second conductive pastes of each of the pairs being in contact with the same one of the front side conductive layers, and said reverse side protective member is placed on the reverse surface of said insulating base with the first conductive paste in one of adjacent two of the pairs and the second conductive paste in the other pair being in contact with the same one of the reverse side conductive layers.

12. A method of producing a thermoelectric converter as set forth in claim 1 , wherein the step of preparing said insulating base, said insulting base in which a sectional area of the second via holes, as taken parallel to the front surface of the insulating base, is smaller than that of the first via holes, as taken parallel to the front surface of the insulating base.

13. A method of producing a thermoelectric converter as set forth in claim 1 , wherein the step of making the stack body, an object in which the front side protective member and the reverse side protective member are formed integrally is used to make the stack body.

14. A method of producing a thermoelectric converter which performs:
a step of preparing an insulating base which contains thermoplastic resin and has formed therein a plurality of via holes extending through a thickness thereof, the via holes being filled with conductive pastes;
a step of pla

Assignees

• Denso Corp

Inventors

• Taniguchi Toshihisa
• Shiraishi Yoshihiko
• Sakaida Atusi
• Okamoto Keiji
• Miyagawa Eijirou

Classifications

• H10W40/28 Primary

  comprising Peltier coolers · CPC title

• H01L2924/0002

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H01L35/32

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H01L35/04 Primary

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H01L2924/00

  Electricity · mapped topic