Data-driven modeling and experimental validation of the laser sintering process for the printed silver nanoparticles ink for in-space manufacturing of printed electronics

Abstract

The proposed work aligns with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)’s On-Demand Manufacturing of Electronics (ODME) project plan to support a multi-material printer on board the International Space Station to demonstrate three-dimensional printing capability. Laser sintering of printed silver nanoparticles (AgNP) ink is an ideal technique for NASA’s ODME to be integrated with printers for NASA’s ODME mission. In this work, we compare the experimental data for optimized laser sintering parameters for two types of AgNP inks: aqueous-based and polymer-based inks. A data-driven simulation model was developed to optimize the laser sintering process, including the transient heat transfer model with the phase change of the metal nanoparticle ink from solidus to liquidus. This experiment and simulation study discuss the laser sintering parameters for the printed AgNP ink on various substrates, including glass, Kapton, and alumina. We study the effect of various sintering parameters such as laser power, laser scanning speed, laser spot sizes, and laser wavelengths. The simulation discusses the variations of maximum sintering temperature and heat distribution in radial and transverse directions through the Ag layer and substrate during laser sintering and compares it with the experimental findings. The proposed data-driven model utilizes experimentally examined temperature-dependent thermal conductivity, film porosity-dependent heat capacity, and the absorption coefficient as wavelength-dependent optical properties of AgNP ink as input data. Our work compares the trends of modelled surface temperature against experimentally determined electrical resistivity of the laser sintered film.