Study of cracking and microstructural evolution during drying of tape-cast aluminium nitride sheets

The influence of organic phases on the drying of tape-cast aluminium nitride green sheets was studied. The cracking during drying and the microstructure of green tapes are sensitive to the inorganic to organic and binder to plasticizer ratios. A high amount of a plasticizer-rich organic phase promotes a low-speed shrinkage of the green tape during drying and prevents it from cracking. The apparent density and the porosity of the green tapes decrease whereas the total shrinkage of the green tapes increases when the organic content increases. The apparent density increases whereas the porosity and the shrinkage decrease when the plasticizer content increases.