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Low-temperature co-fired ceramics (LTCC) are used to fabricate robust multilayer circuits. Typically, thick-film technology is applied for metallization. For specific sensor applications, thin films are deposited directly on the as-fired LTCC-surface. These deposited thin films are structured either by lift-off or by etching. The latter is less error-prone and thus preferred in industry provided the selected materials allow it.
200 nm Ni-thin films were deposited on three different commercial constrained-sintered LTCC (CT708, CT800 and DP951) by electron beam physical vapour deposition. The thin-films were structured by covering corresponding sections with a UV-curable photo resisn and subsequent etching of the uncovered surface, leaving behind the desired structure. The etched Ni-thin film showed high difference in failure rate and sheet resistance regarding the used LTCC-material. DP951 had the lowest sheet resistance and no failure, whereas the CT800 had a failure rate of 40 %. The LTCC with high failure rate showed a strong chemical attack by the used etching medium. To address this phenomenon, the chemical resistance of the three different commercial LTCC (CT708, CT800 and DP951) against four different commonly used etching media (sulphuric acid, phosphoric acid, aqua regia, and hydrofluoric acid) is investigated. The dissolved ions are analyzed by ICP-OES to correlate the LTCC-composition and its chemical resistance.
Low-temperature co-fired ceramics (LTCC) are used to fabricate multilayer circuits which are robust in harsh environments. Thick-film technology is well established for the metallization of circuit boards and microsystems. For specific sensor applications, the combination of LTCC and thin-film technology is advantageous to reach higher structure resolutions. Due to the high roughness of as-fired LTCC surfaces compared with silicon-wafers, the deposition of low-defect- films with narrowly specified properties is challenging. The deposited thin-films are structured either by lift-off or by etching. The latter is less error-prone and thus preferred in industry provided the selected materials allow it. There is spare literature about thin films on commercial LTCC comparing different material systems or sintering techniques. For developing thin-film sensors on multilayer circuits it is crucial to identify thin-film-compatible commercial LTCC material as well as the crucial surface properties. In this work we evaluate the thin-film capability of different LTCC compositions and surface qualities.
To evaluate the influence of the material composition on the thin film capability, 200 nm Ni-thin films were deposited on three different constrained-sintered LTCC (CT708, CT800 and DP951) by electron beam physical vapour deposition. The effect of surface quality was assessed by thin-film deposition on free-sintered, pressure-assisted sintered, and polished DP951. The thin-films were structured by covering corresponding sections with a UV-curable photo resin and subsequent etching of the uncovered surface, leaving behind the desired structure.
The etched Ni-thin films showed high difference in failure rate and sheet resistance regarding the used LTCC-material. DP951 had the lowest sheet resistance and no failure, whereas CT800 had a high sheet resistance and a failure rate of 40 %. These results are correlated with surface roughness of the LTCC, scanning electron micrographs of the deposited thin-films, and the chemical resistance of the LTCC against commonly used etching media. Contrary to the expectations, no correlation between roughness and thin-film capability was found. The LTCC with high failure rate showed a strong chemical attack by the used etching medium. Additionally, the adhesion of thin-films on DP951 is better than on CT708 and CT800.
Low-temperature co-fired ceramics (LTCC) are used to fabricate multilayer circuits which are robust in harsh environments. Thick-film technology is well established for the metallization of circuit boards and microsystems. For specific sensor applications, the combination of LTCC and thin-film technology is advantageous to reach higher structure resolutions. Due to the high roughness of as-fired LTCC surfaces compared with silicon-wafers, the deposition of low-defect- films with narrowly specified properties is challenging. There is spare literature about thin films on commercial LTCC comparing different material systems or sintering techniques. For developing thin film sensors on multilayer circuits it is crucial to identify thin-film-compatible commercial LTCC material as well as the crucial surface properties. In this work we evaluate the thin-film capability of different LTCC surfaces.
The as-fired surfaces of free-sintered, constrained-sintered (sacrificial tape), and pressure-assisted sintered commercial LTCCs (DP951, CT708, CT800), as well as respective polished surfaces, were analyzed by tactile and optical roughness measurements and scanning electron microscopy. The thin-film capability of the LTCC surfaces was assessed by sheet resistance and temperature coefficient of resistance (TCR) of deposited Ni thin-film layers. Contrary to the expectations, no correlation between roughness and thin-film capability was found. Ni thin films on constrained sintered DP951 show the lowest sheet resistance and highest TCR within the experimental framework of the as-fired surfaces. The influence of surface morphology on the film properties is discussed.
Thermoelectric generators can be used for energy harvesting by directly transforming a temperature gradient into a voltage. Multilayer generators based on ceramic multilayer technology are an interesting alternative to conventional π-type generators. They exhibit several advantages like high filling factor, possibility of texturing, co-firing of all materials in one single-step, and reduction of production costs due to the high possible degree of automation. But, co-firing of promising oxide thermoelectric materials, Ca3Co4O9 (p-type) and CaMnO3 (n-type), is very challenging due to the large difference in sintering temperature (300 K).
In this work we show the material development of Ca3Co4O9, CaMnO3, and insulation for multilayer generators co-fired under uniaxial pressure at 900 °C. The materials are tailored regarding their sintering behavior, electrical performance and coefficients of thermal expansion. Tape-casting and pressure assisted sintering are applied to fabricate textured Ca3Co4O9. Compared to conventional sintering, pressure assisted sintering increases the strength by the factor 10 and the power factor by the factor of 20. The combination of sintering additives and uniaxial pressure is used to decrease the sintering temperature of CaMnO3 to 900 °C while maintaining acceptable thermoelectric properties.
Different generator designs (unileg and pn-type) were fabricated and analyzed regarding microstructure and thermoelectric performance. A lower level of complexity is beneficial for co-firing and performance. The unileg demonstrators reach 80% of the simulated output power and the power output is highly reproducible between the different demonstrators (99%).
Thermoelectric generators can be used as energy harvesters for sensor applications. Multilayer thermoelectric generators (ML-TEGs) are a promising alternative to conventional π-type generators due to their high filling factor, high capability of automated production and the texturing potential during the production process. Calcium cobaltite is a promising thermoelectric oxide (p-type) with highly anisotropic properties. The following study shows the development of a textured unileg ML-TEG using ceramic multilayer technology.
Tape-casting and pressure assisted sintering are applied to fabricate textured calcium cobaltite. Compared to conventional sintering, pressure assisted sintering increases the strength by the factor 10. Thermoelectric properties can be tuned either towards maximum power factor or towards maximum figure of merit depending on the pressure level.
As electrical insulation material, a screen-printable glass-ceramic with high resistivity and adapted coefficient of thermal expansion is developed. From various commercial pastes a metallization with low contact resistance is chosen. The unileg ML-TEG is co-fired in one single step. The demonstrators reach 80% of the simulated output power and the power output is highly reproducible between the different demonstrators (99%). These results provide the first proof-of-concept for fabricating co-fired multilayer generators based on textured calcium cobaltite with high power factor, high density, and high strength.
Thermoelectric generators can be used for energy harvesting by directly transforming a temperature gradient into a voltage. Multilayer generators based on low-temperature co-fired ceramics technology (LTCC) are an interesting alternative to conventional π-type generators. They exhibit several advantages like high filling factor, possibility of texturing, co-firing of all materials in one single-step, and reduction of production costs due to the high possible degree of automation. Pressure-assisted sintering enables the theoretical possibility of co-firing two promising oxide thermoelectric materials: Ca3Co4O9 (p-type) and CaMnO3 (n-type). Due to the large difference in sintering temperature (300 K) the process is very challenging.
In this work we show the material development of Ca3Co4O9, CaMnO3, insulation and metallization for multilayer generators co-fired under pressure at 900 °C. The materials are tailored regarding their sintering behavior, electrical performance and coefficients of thermal expansion. Different generator designs (unileg and pn-type) were fabricated and analyzed regarding crack formation, interaction layers and thermoelectric performance. Simulated stresses during cooling in the multilayers are compared with actual crack formation for different sintering conditions. This study shows that a lower pressure level and a lower level of complexity are beneficial for co-firing and performance.
Texturing of calcium cobaltite for thermoelectric applications by pressure assisted sintering
(2021)
Thermoelectric materials can convert waste heat directly into electrical power by using the Seebeck effect. Calcium cobaltite (CCO) is considered as a promising thermoelectric p-type oxide for energy harvesting applications at temperatures above 500 °C. The properties and morphology of single-crystal CCO are strongly anisotropic because of its crystal structure of alternating layers of CoO2 and Ca2CoO3. By aligning the plate-like grains, the anisotropic properties of the grains can be assigned to the poly-crystalline parts.
In this study, the combination of tape casting and pressure-assisted sintering is used to texture and densify large scale components (50 cm²). Thereby, the influence of powder preparation and applied pressure during sintering on texturing and thermoelectric properties is investigated.
The analysis of XRD pole figures revealed that tape casting already leads to highly textured CCO. By pressure variation during sintering, the microstructure of CCO can be tailored either toward maximum power factor as required for energy harvesting or toward maximum figure of merit as required for energy recovery. Low pressure lead to a porous microstructure and maximum figure of merit and higher pressure to full densification and maximum power factor. The electrical and thermal conductivity of CCO seem depending on both texture and sinter density.
Reaction sintering and sintering additives for cost-effective production of thermoelectric oxides
(2020)
Thermoelectric oxides attract much interest recently. Although their thermoelectric properties are inferior to non-oxides, they exhibit distinct advantages. Thermoelectric oxides are stable in air at higher temperatures, their raw materials are less toxic, and more abundant. To enhance attractivity of these materials for industrial applications, production costs need to be reduced.
Conventionally, the legs of thermoelectric generators are sintered from green bodies of previously synthesized powder. Reaction-sintering is a fabrication method without a powder synthesis step, as the final phase is formed during the sintering from a raw material mixture. Moreover, the reduction of chemical potential during reaction-sintering is effective as an additional driving force for sintering. We show that reaction-sintering increases the densification of CaMnO3 (n-type, Sm doped). Consequently, the electrical conductivities improved by about 100 % leading to superior power factors (PF = 230 µW/mK² for CaMnO3).
Another approach to reduce the production costs is to lower the sintering temperature by adding sinter additives. The addition of 4 wt% CuO to CaMnO3 lowers the sinter temperature from 1250 °C to 1050 °C. The achieved power factor PF = 264 µW/mK is more than two times higher as reported in literature for the same dopant.
Thermoelectric materials can convert waste heat directly into electrical power by utilizing the Seebeck effect. Calcium cobaltite (Ca3Co4O9, p-type) and calcium manganate (CaMnO3, n-type) are two of the most promising oxide thermoelectric materials. The performance of these materials is evaluated by the power factor PF = S²∙σ and the figure of merit ZT = (PF ∙ T) / κ, demanding high Seebeck coefficient S, high electrical conductivity σ and low thermal conductivity κ. The latter two are increasing with increasing relative sinter density. According to theory, the relative density of ceramics can be improved by increasing the driving force for sintering. This study investigates different approaches to increase the driving force for sintering of Ca3Co4O9 and CaMnO3 to improve densities and thermoelectric properties.
The following approaches were applied: minimizing the energy input during powder synthesis by calcination, fine milling of the powder, using reaction-sintering without a powder synthesis step, and adding a transient liquid phase by sinter additives.
All different approaches led to an increased densification and thus higher electrical conductivity and higher PF. Thermal conductivity increased as well but not to the same extent. E.g. reaction-sintering increased the densification of Ca3Co4O9 (p-type) and CaMnO3 (n-type). Consequently, the electrical conductivities improved by about 100 % for both oxides leading to superior power factors (PF = 230 µW/mK² for CaMnO3). Although the thermal conductivity increased as well by 8 %, the figures of merit (ZT) were significantly higher compared to conventionally sintered bars. The addition of 4 wt% CuO as a sinter additive to CaMnO3 lowers the sinter temperature from above 1250 °C to below 1100 °C and increases the relative density. Due to the increased density, both electrical conductivity and PF increased by more than 200 % even though the sintering temperature was 150 K lower.
Thermoelectric materials can convert waste heat directly into electrical power by using the Seebeck effect. Calcium cobaltite Ca3Co4O9 is a promising p-type oxide thermoelectric material for applications between 600 °C and 900 °C in air. The properties and morphology of Ca3Co4O9 are strongly anisotropic because of its crystal structure of alternating layers of CoO2 and Ca2CoO3. By aligning the plate-like grains, the anisotropic properties can be assigned to the component. Pressure-assisted sintering (PAS), as known from large-scale production of low temperature co-fired ceramics, was used to sinter multilayers of Ca3Co4O9 green tape at 900 °C with different pressures and dwell times. In-situ shrinkage measurements, microstructural investigations and electric measurements were performed. Pressure-less sintered multilayers have a 2.5 times higher electrical conductivity at room temperature than dry pressed test bars with randomly oriented particles. The combination of tape casting and PAS induces a pronounced alignment of the anisotropic grains. Relative density increases from 57 % after free sintering for 24 h to 94 % after 2 h of PAS with 10 MPa axial load. By applying a uniaxial pressure of 10 MPa during sintering, the electrical conductivity (at 25°C) improves by a factor of 15 compared to test bars with randomly oriented particles. The high temperature thermoelectric properties show the same dependencies. The smaller the applied axial load, the lower the relative densities, and the lower the electrical conductivity. Longer dwell times may increase the density and the electrical conductivity significantly if the microstructure is less densified as in the case of a small axial load like 2 MPa. At higher applied pressures the dwell time has no significant influence on the thermoelectric properties. This study shows that PAS is a proper technique to produce dense Ca3Co4O9 panels with good thermoelectric properties similar to hot-pressed tablets, even in large-scale production.
Lowering the sintering temperature of calcium manganate CaMnO3 for thermoelectric applications
(2018)
Thermoelectric materials can convert waste heat directly into electrical power by utilizing the Seebeck effect. Calcium cobaltite (p-type) and calcium manganate (n-type) are two of the most promising oxide thermoelectric materials. The development of cost-effective multilayer thermoelectric generators requires the co-firing of these materials and therefore the adjustment of sintering temperatures. Calcium manganate is conventionally sintered between 1200 °C and 1350 °C. Calcium cobaltite exhibits an undesired phase transition at 926 °C but can be sintered to high relative density of 95 % at 900 °C under axial pressure of 7.5 MPa. Hence, co-firing at 900 °C would be favourable. Therefore, strategies for lowering the sintering temperature of calcium manganate have been investigated. Basically, two approaches are common: i) addition of low melting additives like Bi2O3-ZnO-B2O3-SiO2 (BBSZ) glass or Bi2O3, and ii) addition of additives that form low-melting eutectics with the base material, for example CuO. In this study, several low melting additives including BBSZ glass and Bi2O3, as well as CuO were tested regarding their effect on calcium manganate densification. Bi2O3 did not improve the densification, whereas BBSZ glass led to 10 % higher relative density at 1200 °C. An addition of 4 wt% CuO decreases the temperature of maximum sinter rate from above 1200 °C to 1040 °C. By reducing the particle size of the raw materials from 2 μm to 0.7 μm the maximum sinter rate could be further shifted 20 K towards lower temperatures and the sinter begin decreased from 920 °C to 740 °C. It is shown that eutectic phase formation is more effective in lowering sintering temperature and accelerating densification than low-melting additives.