Nickel-Based Inks for Inkjet Printing: A Review on Latest Trends

Currently, inkjet printed conductive films have attracted more and more attention in the field of electronic devices. Metallic nanoparticles are the most popular choice for the fabrication of conductive ink because of their low melting point and high electrical conductivity. Gold (Au) and silver (Ag) nanoparticles (NPs) are the most commonly used materials for synthesizing conductive inks due to their high conductivity and anti-oxidation properties but suffer from the high cost of manufacturing (because of nanoparticle synthesis) which hinders their practical application. These also suffer from electromigration which lowers reliability. In this review paper, conductive nickel inks are reviewed along with their composites like copper, silver, graphene, and other composites. The reason for choosing nickel-based ink is because of its excellent conductive properties while being more economical. Particle size, film thickness, and electrical resistivity of the inks are compared for various ink compositions. This review paper comprises the research done on nickel conductive inks for various printing and coating techniques from 1983 to 2021. An extensive literature survey is done for nickel-oxide and nickel-metal inks. Metals considered in the research are silver, copper, graphene, Yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ), manganese, and lithium. The highest conductivity obtained for nickel used with multi-layered graphene (MLG) sheet is 400S/cm. A wide range of temperature (room temperature to 1600°C) usage is observed for various nickel-based inks. The smallest particle size observed is 1nm for nickel-based conductive ink. Various techniques like spin coating, 3D printing, screen printing, spray coating, electrodeposition technique, chemical vapor deposition, polyol process, hydrothermal process, transmelation process, inkjet printing techniques have been used in literature. Out of all the techniques, inkjet printing technique has shown the best result in terms of resolution, line width, and conductivity.