Electrical and thermal properties of electrically conductive adhesives using a heat-resistant epoxy binder

Heat resistant conductive adhesives composed of a multi-functional epoxy matrix containing Ag flakes were developed in this work. The adhesives are potentially stable up to 200-250degC because the primary relaxation mechanism of the matrix resin occurs at ~250degC. However, the adhesives appeared to exhibit another relaxation mechanism at an intermediate temperature range (100-180degC) when a mono-epoxide was added to the mixture as the reactive diluent. Adhesives cured under appropriate curing conditions exhibited relatively low electrical resistivity and high thermal conductivity in the in-plane direction. Because the reactive diluent influences the electrical and thermal properties as well as the thermo-mechanical properties of the adhesives, the selection of the most appropriate reactive diluent will be the key to developing conductive adhesives that exhibit superior heat resistance.