Apparatus and method for making conductive element

An apparatus for making a conductive element, comprising:

• an original carbon nanotube film supply unit continuously supplying an original carbon nanotube film comprising a plurality of carbon nanotubes extending substantially along a first direction, the original carbon nanotube film supply unit comprises a carbon nanotube array, a supply stage configured to fix the carbon nanotube array, and a drawing tool configured to drawing the original carbon nanotube film from the carbon nanotube array, the original carbon nanotube film is suspended;
• a patterning unit configured to emit a laser beam on the suspended original carbon nanotube film to form a plurality of through holes spaced from each other on the original carbon nanotube film to form a patterned carbon nanotube film, a power density of the laser beam ranges from 10000 watts per square meter to 100000 watts per square meter and a moving speed of the laser beam ranges from 800 millimeters per second to 1500 millimeters per second, the patterning unit comprises a laser;
• a solvent treating unit comprising a container and a solvent received in the container, wherein the solvent treating unit is configured to spray the solvent on the patterned carbon nanotube film such that the patterned carbon nanotube film is shrunk into a treated carbon nanotube film, the treated carbon nanotube film comprises a plurality of carbon nanotube linear units and a plurality of carbon nanotube groups comprising some of the plurality of carbon nanotubes intersected with each other, and the patterning unit is located between the original carbon nanotube film supply unit and the solvent treating unit such that the original carbon nanotube film is first patterned by the patterning unit and then treated by the solvent treating unit;
• a substrate supply unit continuously providing a substrate and comprising the substrate and a coil, and the substrate winds around the coil;
• a pressing unit comprising a pair of rollers and generating a pressure to the treated carbon nanotube film and the substrate, to form a conductive element;
• and
• a collecting unit collecting the conductive element and comprising a collecting shaft;
• wherein at least one portion of the pair of rollers and at least one portion of a top surface of the original carbon nanotube film supply unit are coplanar, and the patterning unit and the solvent treating unit are located above a plane defined by the at least one portion of the pair of rollers and the at least one portion of the top surface of the original carbon nanotube film supply unit;
• and the original carbon nanotube film supply unit, the patterning unit, the solvent treating unit, the pair of rollers, and the collecting unit are arranged in that order along the first direction.