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One-step deposition of hydrophobic coatings on paper for printed-electronics applications

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Abstract

The ability to pattern highly conductive features on paper substrates is critically important for applications in radio frequency identification (RFID) tags, displays, sensors, printed electronics, and diagnostics. Ink-jet printing particle-free reactive silver inks is an additive, material efficient and versatile strategy for fabrication of highly conductive patterns; however, the intrinsic wetting properties of cellulose based papers are not suitable to serve as substrates for this process. This study reports one-step and practical modification of the surface of paper substrates using industrially available materials. The paper substrates were dip-coated with films of hydrocarbon and fluorocarbon based polymeric resins. Ink-jet printing particle-free reactive silver inks on the modified paper substrates followed by fast thermal annealing resulted in highly conductive patterns. The coatings improved the conductivity of the patterns and reduced the number of printing layers required to obtain conductivity. We finally demonstrated fabrication of a printed RFID tag on the coated paper substrates operating at the frequency range of 865–870 MHz.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the Research Fund of the Erciyes University (Project No. FBA-2018-8366). MSO acknowledges partial support from the Turkish Academy of Sciences Distinguished Young Scientist Award (TUBA-GEBIP). Water repellant resins were kindly supported by SPOT Chemical Industry and Trade Inc.

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Correspondence to Ahmet Turan Ozdemir or Mustafa Serdar Onses.

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Gozutok, Z., Kinj, O., Torun, I. et al. One-step deposition of hydrophobic coatings on paper for printed-electronics applications. Cellulose 26, 3503–3512 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10570-019-02326-y

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