Printed circuit heaters with ultrathin low resistivity materials

Abstract

A printed circuit heater and process for forming a printed circuit heater are described. The printed circuit heater is formed by depositing a thin metal layer onto a surface of a metal carrier foil, forming a composite. The thin metal layer has a thickness of about 0.1 μm to about 2 μm. The composite is attached to a substrate such that the thin metal layer is in contact with the substrate, forming a laminate. At least a portion of the metal carrier foil is selectively removed from portions of the laminate. The thin metal layer is patterned and etched such that the etched thin metal layer has a heat density of from about 0.5 watts/in2 to about 20 watts/in2 at working voltages from about 3 volts to about 600 volts. The remaining portions of the metal carrier foil, if any, can be selectively removed to thereby provide low resistance busses within the circuit, thus eliminating the need for multiple external connections, and to facilitate evenness of heat distribution.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.