Photostructural Glass Ceramics and Optimized Processing for Laser Initiated 3D Conductors (PhotoCon)

ABSTRACT: In this STTR effort a small business company Obalon LLC is teaming up with industry leader Aerospace Corporation in order to develop novel photostructural glass ceramic composition PhotoCon with capability of laser induced 3D conductor patterning inside the bulk material. Following the photolytic process of laser exposure and the development of latent image the team will implement the series of novel processing steps that would enable conglomeration of metal around the initially exposed areas until the desired RF and DC conductivity of the patterned 3D structure is achieved. In Phase I effort through the theoretical analysis and the experimental testing we will identify the glass ceramic composition requirements that would enable the metal conductor formation inside the bulk material. We will also optimize the processing steps for efficient conductor patterning. In Phase II we will produce liter size material samples and fully characterize the resulting material for both the photo initiated conductor formation and dimensional patterning using chemical etching process. The path towards high temperature sensor fabrication will be established and high temperature resistant glass ceramic structures will be produced. BENEFIT: Novel glass ceramics with the ability to fabricate 3D conductors in bulk material using automated laser writing will find a number of applications in consumer electronics including touch screen displays, portable antennas and interconnects for processor chips. The capability of precise glass ceramic patterning with the ability to wire desired elements will enable the next generation 3D circuit boards. The electrode formation in combination with etched micro fluidic channel fabrication opens up a wide variety of biomedical sensor applications for both the massive low cost parallel sample processing such as DNA sequencing and the specific micro analytical probes for point of care testing. The novel high temperature glass ceramic sensors and RF components will increase the reliability and improve the manufacturability of system designs in aerospace industry.