Metal Deposition
Systems and methods include depositing one or more materials on a voltage switchable dielectric material. In certain aspects, a voltage switchable dielectric material is disposed on a conductive backplane. In some embodiments, a voltage switchable dielectric material includes regions having different characteristic voltages associated with deposition thereon. Some embodiments include masking, and may include the use of a removable contact mask. Certain embodiments include electrografting. Some embodiments include an intermediate layer disposed between two layers.
1 . A method for fabricating a current-carrying formation, the method comprising:
providing a conductive backplane;
forming a layer of a voltage switchable dielectric material on at least a portion of the conductive backplane; and
depositing an electrically conductive material on at least a portion of the voltage switchable dielectric material.
2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the backplane includes a metal.
3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the backplane includes any of Cu, Al, Ti, Ag, Au, and Pt.
4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the backplane includes a conductive polymer.
5 . The method of claim 4 , wherein the conductive polymer includes any of a polyaniline and a polythiophene.
6 . The method of claim 1 , wherein providing includes providing a conductive backplane on a substrate.
7 . The method of claim 6 , further comprising removing the substrate after depositing the electrically conductive material.
8 . The method of claim 7 , wherein removing includes dissolving the substrate.
9 . The method of claim 7 , wherein removing includes melting the substrate.
10 . The method of claim 6 , wherein providing includes incorporating a decohesion layer between the substrate and the conductive backplane.
11 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the electrically conductive material includes any of Cu, Al, Ag, Ti, Au, and Pt.
12 . The method of claim 1 , wherein providing includes providing a decohesion layer on the conductive backplane, and at least a portion of the voltage switchable dielectric material is formed on at least a portion of the decohesion layer.
13 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising removing the conductive backplane after depositing the electrically conductive material.
14 . The method of claim 1 , wherein depositing includes electrochemically depositing.
15 . The method of claim 1 , wherein depositing includes using a cyclic voltage.
16 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the voltage switchable dielectric material has a characteristic voltage and depositing includes generating a voltage greater than the characteristic voltage.
17 . The method of claim 16 , wherein the voltage is generated between the conductive backplane and a source of ions associated with the electrically conductive material.
18 . The method of claim 16 , wherein the characteristic voltage is between 0.1 and 1000 volts.
19 . The method of claim 18 , wherein the characteristic voltage is between 3 and 100 volts.
20 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising attaching a package to the voltage switchable dielectric material and the deposited electrically conductive material.
21 . The method of claim 20 , wherein attaching includes encasing at least a portion of the deposited electrically conductive material in a polymer.
22 . The method of claim 20 , further comprising removing the conductive backplane after depositing the electrically conductive material.
23 . The method of claim 20 , further comprising removing the conductive backplane after attaching the package.
24 . The method of claim 1 , wherein depositing includes defining the portion of the voltage switchable dielectric material with a mask.
25 . The method of claim 24 , wherein the mask is removable.
26 . The method of claim 25 , further comprising removing the mask after depositing the voltage switchable dielectric material.
27 . A current-carrying formation comprising:
a conductive backplane;
a layer of voltage switchable dielectric material disposed on at least a portion of the conductive backplane; and
an electrical conductor deposited on at least a portion of the voltage switchable dielectric material.
28 . The current-carrying formation of claim 27 , wherein any of the conductive backplane and the electrical conductor includes any of Cu, Ti, Al, Ag, Au, and Pt.
29 . The current-carrying formation of claim 22 , wherein the layer includes a characteristic voltage between 3 and 100 volts.
30 . The current-carrying formation of claim 22 , further comprising a package attached to at least one of the conductive backplane, the voltage switchable dielectric material, and the electrical conductor.