Inkjet printing of conductive patterns with an aqueous solution of [AgO2C(CH2OCH2)3H] without any additional stabilizing ligands

Abstract The use of silver(I)-2-[2-(2-methoxyethoxy)ethoxy]acetate, [AgO2C(CH2OCH2)3H], and its application as an aqueous metal-organic decomposition (MOD) inkjet ink is reported. The chemical and physical properties of the silver carboxylate and the ink formulated thereof are discussed. The ink meets all requirements of piezo driven inkjet printing. The printed features were converted into electrically conducting silver patterns by thermal or photo-thermal treatment. The conversion of [AgO2C(CH2OCH2)3H] to elemental silver follows a two-step decomposition as demonstrated by thermogravimetry–mass spectrometry (TG–MS) measurements. The measured conductivities of the printed features on glass and polyethylene-terephthalate (PET) are 2.7 × 107 S m−1 and 1.1 × 107 S m−1, respectively, which correspond to 43% (glass) and 18% (PET) of the bulk silver conductivity.