Nanoparticles to replace precious metals in electronic devices

The Little Mohammed Al Gharbi

Japanese scientists have developed a technique to convert copper to metal whose properties are similar to those of precious metals such as gold and silver.

The new material, made up of copper nanoparticles, will have promising applications in the production of electronic devices that rely on precious and expensive metals.

It also has another advantage as it is suitable for manufacturing electronic components using 3D printing techniques as one of the best environmentally friendly manufacturing methods, researchers say in the recently published study in the Scientific Report.

Less expensive alternatives
Smart and electronic device manufacturing requires the use of precious metals and complex methods that are often polluting the environment.

The development of Internet objects has increased the demand for flexible electronic devices that can be worn. For example, Internet objects rely on communication between devices, which requires the manufacture of antennas requiring expensive gold or silver metal.

Researchers are seeking new and effective ways to replace these precious metals with less costly ones that have the same efficiency in the manufacture of electronic devices, including copper nanoparticles.

However, the techniques currently available for the preparation of copper nanoparticles are not ideal because they usually result in impurities associated with the material.

Since these impurities can only be removed by very high temperatures, copper nanoparticles produced at room temperature are not pure and therefore can not harden into usable parts.

This is one of the most important obstacles today to find a more efficient and less expensive alternative to cutting gold and silver used in electronic devices.

Pure nanoparticles
Japanese researchers have overcome this obstacle by successfully synthesizing copper nanoparticles in a way that enables them to solidify at temperatures much lower than previous methods while maintaining a high degree of purity.

The team changed the structure of copper nanoparticles and made them more stable so as not to degrade at low temperatures.

"Copper was an attractive alternative in the preparation of electrical circuits," says study co-author Kiyoshi Kani of Tuhoku University's Multidisciplinary Research Institute of Advanced Materials.

The most important stage in the use of copper is to change it so that it can be hardened at low temperatures.

This is difficult so far because copper easily reacts with moisture in the air and turns into unstable nanoparticles. "

"With the methods used in this study, which are based on changing the structure of carbon (found in the molecules of acids used in the preparation of nanomaterials) and therefore make it more stable, we have succeeded in overcoming this problem of instability," he said.

The researchers hope to expand the application of their copper nanoparticles and methods of preparation beyond electronics.

They believe that these materials will be useful in other sectors as well.

"Our approach has enabled the production of highly efficient copper nanotubes that can be used in flexible, wearable electronic devices that can be easily manufactured through printing at very low cost," says Kani.