Abstract: The disclosure relates to a method of binder removal from a green body before sintering or the like wherein the green body is initially heated to a temperature above the melting or flow point of the binder to liquify the binder and, at the elevated temperature, a small portion of the green body is brought into intimate contact with a non-supporting porous body of lower capillarity potential for the liquid binder. The liquid is drawn from all parts of the green body to the region of contact between the porous body and the green body and enters the body of lower capillarity potential preferentially, removing liquid from the green body through the surface of the green body only at said region of contact. The draining is continued with or without further increase in temperature until the green body is opened or becomes permeable.

Abstract: A substrate and method of manufacture wherein a substrate is molded from particulate material wherein grooves on and through the body are formed during substrate molding and prior to sintering. The substrate includes all buss structure molded therein. Cooling of chips is provided by providing a heat sink in grooves formed within a substrate and beneath the chips. Microcircuits are formed by disposing on the substrate and interconnecting via buss structures on the substrate various semiconductor dies with encapsulation of some or all of the substrates and components thereon, if desired. In addition, connection from the board to external circuits is available by means of an edge connector.

Abstract: The disclosure relates to a method of binder removal from a green body before sintering or the like wherein the green body is initially heated to a temperature above the melting or flow point of the binder to liquify the binder and, at the elevated temperature, a small portion of the green body is brought into intimate contact with a non-supporting porous body of lower capillarity potential for the liquid binder. The liquid is drawn from all parts of the green body to the region of contact between the porous body and the green body and enters the body of lower capillarity potential preferentially, removing liquid from the green body through the surface of the green body only at said region of contact. The draining is continued with or without further increase in temperature until the green body is opened or becomes permeable.

Abstract: A substrate and method of manufacture wherein a substrate is molded from particulate material wherein grooves on and through the body are formed during substrate molding and prior to sintering. The substrate includes all buss structure molded therein. Cooling of chips is provided by providing a heat sink in grooves formed within a substrate and beneath the chips. Microcircuits are formed by disposing on the substrate and interconnecting via buss structures on the substrate various semiconductor dies with encapsulation of some or all of the substrates and components thereon, if desired. In addition, connection from the board to external circuits is available by means of an edge connector.

Abstract: A substrate and method of manufacture wherein a substrate is molded from particulate material wherein grooves on and through the body are formed during substrate molding and prior to sintering. The substrate includes all buss structure molded therein. Cooling of chips is provided by providing a heat sink in grooves formed within a substrate and beneath the chips. Microcircuits are formed by disposing on the substrate and interconnecting via buss structures on the substrate various semiconductor dies with encapsulation of some or all of the substrates and components thereon, if desired. In addition, connection from the board to external circuits is available by means of an edge connector.

Abstract: The disclosure relates to knife blades for precision cutting, such as in optical surgery, wherein the blade or cutting edge is formed from a molded plastic filled with particulate material which is much harder than the plastic, the particles of particulate material being generally smaller in their largest dimension than the radius of curvature of the apex of the cutting edge. A thin coating of a metal which is much harder than the filled plastic is coated onto the cutting edge to replicate the molded shape and provide substantial additional hardness to the blade edge. In a further embodiment, a transducer is molded into the blade body adjacent the edge with all processing steps being at temperatures below those harmful to the transducer. Another embodiment provides light conducting elements molded into the blade body for measurement of cut depth or the like.

Abstract: The disclosure relates to an art medium which is readily moldable, has substantially the same feel as clay, can provide aesthetic exterior surfaces without additional processing steps, can be worked by standard metal working tools, such as drills, etc. and results in a metal end product. Briefly, the above is accomplished by homogeneously mixing together a powdered metal which is sinterable and a plasticizer. This composition is mixed together with a liquid, preferably water in sufficient quantity to provide the consistency desired by the user, the same as when operating with clay. Water is added during molding to replace that which evaporates to maintain the desired consistency. The powdered metal has an average particle size of from about 10 microns down to about 0.1 micron. The ratio by weight of powdered metal to plasticizer is from about 97% to about 91% powdered metal and from about 3% to about 9% plasticizer. A preferred ratio by weight is 95% powdered metal and 5% plasticizer.

Abstract: The disclosure relates to a method whereby complex shapes, not moldable in a single molding operation, are molded in plural parts, each part being of the same or different powdered metal composition or prealloy of the type disclosed. One or more of the parts preferably has bumps or dimples thereon for joining to another of the parts in the manner to be described. The other part can also have depressions for receiving the bumps to aid in alignment of the parts prior to processing.

Abstract: The disclosure relates to a system for removing binder from "green" bodies wherein debinding action takes place substantially uniformly throughout the sytem for large load as well as for small loads. This result is obtained by providing a plurality of shelves for holding the parts and providing turbulent atmosphere flow across all shelves with recirculation taking palce over a water fall in the system to provide both a water saturated atmosphere and removal of binder from the atmosphere and system simultaneously.

Abstract: The disclosure relates to a method of rapidly removing binder from a "green" body composed of metal or cermet fine particles and a carbon-containing binder wherein the debinderizing step is performed in a water saturated atmosphere to provide chemical reaction with elemental carbon, the reaction products being removed from the system.

Abstract: The disclosure relates to a feedstock of particulate material for use in formation of articles therefrom, the feedstock including a homogeneous combination of large particles, small particles and a binder. The large particles comprise less than about 60% by volume of the feedstock and are defined as particles having a diameter greater than their diffusion length. The fine particles and binder combined comprise more than about 40% by volume of the feedstock, the fine particles being defined as particles having a diameter less than their diffusion length.

Abstract: A substrate and method of manufacture wherein a substrate is molded from particulate material wherein grooves on and through the body are formed during substrate molding and prior to sintering. The substrate includes all buss structure molded therein. Cooling of chips is provided by providing a heat sink in grooves formed within a substrate and beneath the chips. Microcircuits are formed by disposing on the substrate and interconnecting via buss structures on the substrate various semiconductor dies with encapsulation of some or all of the substrates and components thereon, if desired. In addition, connection from the board to external circuits is available by means of an edge connector.

Abstract: A substrate and method of manufacture wherein a substrate is molded from particulate material wherein grooves on and through the body are formed during substrate molding and prior to sintering. The substrate includes all buss structure molded therein. Cooling of chips is provided by providing a heat sink in grooves formed within a substrate and beneath the chips.

Abstract: A method of forming electrically conductive paths within grooves formed in a substrate wherein the width of the grooves is of the same order of magnitude as the thickness of an electrically conductive layer deposited on the substrate and in the grooves. The substrate with grooves therein is exposed to a medium whereby electrically conductive material from the medium deposits substantially uniformly on all surfaces of the substrate which are exposed to the medium. In this way, the build-up of conductive material in grooves will take place along the side walls as well as the bottom of the grooves. If the layer is of substantially the same order of magnitude as the width of the groove (about one half the groove width or greater), the grooves will fill up with conductive material. The remainder of the substrate will ultimately provide a substantially flat conductive layer on the substrate surface.

Abstract: A system for cooling a substrate via a continuous enclosed path within the substrate that passes closely adjacent heat producing components on or adjacent the substrate. According to a first embodiment, heat, where located on the substrate, is transmitted to a heat sink in the vapor phase by a change in phase of a liquid in the path to a vapor, thereby creating little change in temperature from heat source to heat sink and maintaining the substrate and components at substantially the same substantially constant temperature. According to a second embodiment, heat is removed by a circulating conductive liquid in the continuous enclosed path which takes up heat at the sources and removes the heat at a sink in the path.

Abstract: A method of forming electrically conductive paths within grooves formed in a substrate wherein the width of the grooves is of the same order of magnitude as the thickness of an electrically conductive layer deposited on the substrate and in the grooves. The substrate with grooves therein is exposed to a medium whereby electrically conductive material from the medium deposits substantially uniformly on all surfaces of the substrate which are exposed to the medium. In this way, the build-up of conductive material in grooves will take place along the side walls as well as the bottom of the grooves. If the layer is of substantially the same order of magnitude as the width of the groove (about one half the groove width or greater), the grooves will fill up with conductive material. The remainder of the substrate will ultimately provide a substantially flat conductive layer on the substrate surface.

Abstract: Ductility is controlled by controlling the size of the particles of particulate material and/or the degree of sphericity of the particles, the smaller and/or more spherical the particles, the greater the ductility of the material. The material has preferably spherical pores, preferably hermetic, with a controlled ratio of pore volume to material volume to provide the property of compressibility. The particulate material itself must have the capability of becoming ductile. The ratio of pore volume to total volume of the material is controlled by particle size, sintering profile the property of the material and the initial volume loading of the pre-sintered part (i.e. the ratio of binder to particulate material). Some materials which are not ductile in and of themselves can be formed into ductile and/or compressible materials in accordance with the system of the present invention.

Abstract: A method of forming precision metal alloy shaped parts starting with small particles of the individual metals and/or individual compounds containing the metals of the targeted metal alloy and a binder. A mix is initially formed of metals and/or compounds of the metals required to form a targeted alloy wherein the metal percent of each metal and/or compound is provided whereby the targeted alloy will be provided. The sizes of the particles of the metals and/or alloys are as small as possible and preferably in the range from one tenth of a micron to ten microns. These particles are mixed with an appropriate binder to form a homogeneous mass.

Abstract: A method and system whereby binder can be removed from a green body much more rapidly than in prior art systems without interfering with the integrity or aesthetics of the final part by providing a binder system having at least two components and preferably a mold release agent, the binder system having differing melting points. Each binder component can have parts with different melting temperature. When the temperature is raised to a point above the intermediate temperature at which the binder system flows, binder will proceed to exude to the surface of the green body wherefrom it can be removed.The binder is removed from the surface of the green body by blowing a non-saturated chemically inert atmosphere over the surface of the green body rapidly whereby the atmosphere at a region near the surface of the green body does not become saturated with the binder vapors.

Abstract: A substrate and method of manufacture wherein a substrate is molded from particulate material wherein grooves on and through the body are formed during substrate molding and prior to sintering. The substrate includes all buss structure molded therein. Cooling of chips is provided by providing a heat sink in an aperture formed within a substrate and beneath the chips.