Inkjet nozzle assembly with low density suspended heater element
View Patent ↗An inkjet nozzle assembly comprises: a nozzle chamber for containing ink, the nozzle chamber having a nozzle opening defined in a roof thereof; and a bubble-forming heater element positioned in the nozzle chamber. The heater element is suspended in the nozzle chamber and parallel with a plane of the roof. The heater element is comprised of solid material having a total mass of less than 10 nanograms.
1. An inkjet nozzle assembly comprising:
a nozzle chamber for containing ink, said nozzle chamber having a nozzle opening defined in a roof thereof;
a bubble-forming heater element positioned in said nozzle chamber;
drive circuitry for driving heating of the heater element,
wherein said heater element is comprised of solid material having a thickness of at least 0.25 microns and a total mass of less than 10 nanograms.
2. The inkjet nozzle assembly of claim 1 , wherein said heater element is formed of solid material more than 90% of which, by atomic proportion, is constituted by at least one element having an atomic number below 50.
3. The inkjet nozzle assembly of claim 1 , wherein said heater element comprises titanium nitride.
4. The inkjet nozzle assembly of claim 1 , wherein said heater element has two opposite sides and is configured such that a gas bubble formed by said heater element is formed at both said sides of said heater element.
5. The inkjet nozzle assembly of claim 1 , wherein said roof and sidewalls of said nozzle chamber are comprised of silicon nitride, silicon oxide or silicon oxynitride.
6. The inkjet nozzle assembly of claim 1 , wherein a roof of the chamber is spaced apart from a substrate, and sidewalls of said nozzle chamber extend between said roof and said substrate.
7. The inkjet nozzle assembly of claim 6 , wherein said roof is less than 10 microns thick.