Effect of preparation conditions on the properties of silver-glass composite powders prepared by spray pyrolysis

Silver-glass composite powders were directly prepared by spray pyrolysis at various preparation conditions. The composite powders prepared at temperatures between 1000 and 1200°C had spherical shape and non-aggregation characteristics when the flow rate of the carrier gas was 20 L/min. The optimum flow rate of the carrier gas to prepare the composite powders with high sinterability and low resistivity was 20 L/min when the preparation temperature of the composite powders was 1100°C. The thicknesses of the conducting layers formed from the composite powders prepared at temperatures of 900, 1000, 1100 and 1200°C were 5.9, 4.5, 3.4 and 4.0 μm at a firing temperature of 400°C. The conducting layers obtained from the composite powders prepared at 1000, 1100 and 1200°C had low specific resistances below 5 μΩ cm even at a low firing temperature of 400°C. The specific resistances of the conducting layers formed from the composite powders prepared at 1100°C were decreased from 3.3 to 1.9 μΩ cm when the firing temperatures were increased from 400 to 550°C.