Molding compounds based on aminophenoxyphthalonitrile/epoxy resin for high-temperature electronic packaging applications

Developing the packaging materials with superior high-temperature stability to meet the requirement of high-power devices is crucial. Herein, we synthesized 4-(4-aminophenoxy)phthalonitrile (APN) and blended it with polyfunctional epoxy resin (EP) to obtain the APN/EP (APNE) binary blends. Further, we employed the APNE as resin matrix to prepare a new high-temperature stable molding compound, aminophenoxyphthalonitrile epoxy molding compound (AEMC), aiming for high-power device packaging. Firstly, the curing behavior, reaction mechanism, thermal stability, and mechanical properties of the APNE system were systematically studied. Although the crosslinking density of the cured APNE decreased with increasing the APN content, the introduction of APN made the cured resins have the stable and rigid structures of isoindoline, triazine, and phthalocyanine. Thus, the cured APNE had the initial thermal decomposition temperature above 370 °C, the glass transition temperature (T_g) up to 306 °C, and the char yield at 800 °C up to 61.1 %, showing an excellent thermal performance. In addition, the flexural strength, flexural modulus, and impact strength of the cured APNE also increased with increasing the APN content. Such good properties of the APNE resin matrix endowed the AEMC with an attractive performance. The AEMC exhibited a good compatibility in molding process with the current epoxy molding compound (EMC). The T_g, thermal-aging resistance, intrinsic flame retardancy, dielectric properties, and thermal conductivity of the cured AEMC were all superior to those of the cured EMC. Therefore, the AEMC shows a good application prospect in the field of high-temperature electronic packaging.