Laser-assisted selective copper deposition on commercial PA6 by catalytic electroless plating – process and activation mechanism

Abstract Results of in-depth experimental analysis of the laser-assisted local copper deposition on commercial Polyamide 6 (PA 6) are presented. Pico- and nanosecond lasers were validated for surface modification of the polymer followed by silver (I) activation and finished by autocatalytic electroless copper plating on the laser-modified areas. Detailed investigations were dedicated to finding out the origin of selective metal plating, including the surface profiling and wettability dynamics, XPS analysis and electric resistance measurements of the deposited copper layer. Based on the experimental data, the mechanism of the polymer surface activation by the laser modification is proposed.