JP7614004B2 - Manufacturing method of electronic components and functional film forming device for electronic components - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing electronic components, such as multilayer ceramic capacitors, and a functional film forming device for electronic components.

For example, in electronic components such as the multilayer ceramic capacitor shown in Patent Document 1, in order to increase the area of the internal electrode layers while miniaturizing the electronic components, a side gap insulating layer made of a dielectric is formed on the side of the element body where the side of the internal electrode layer is exposed.

However, in conventional manufacturing methods, the side gap insulating layer is formed, for example, by a coating method and then fired simultaneously with the element body. Therefore, conventional methods have the problem that it is difficult to control the thickness of the side gap insulating layer and the range in which the side gap insulating layer is formed.

In recent years, electronic components have become smaller, and it is expected that the side gap insulation layer will also be a thin, uniform film. However, there is a problem in that it is difficult to form a thin, uniform side gap insulation layer using a coating method. In addition, as electronic components become smaller, there is also a growing demand to form functional films such as insulation layers only in necessary locations.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 62-237714

The present invention was made in consideration of the above-mentioned circumstances, and its purpose is to provide a method for manufacturing electronic components that can easily form a functional film of a specific thickness in a required location even when the electronic components are miniaturized, and a functional film forming device for electronic components that is suitable for this manufacturing method.

In order to achieve the above object, a method for manufacturing an electronic component according to the present invention includes:
1. A method for manufacturing an electronic component having a device body with a plurality of exterior surfaces, comprising:
The method includes a step (rolling transfer method) of rolling the outer surface of the element body so that the outer surface of the element body is successively brought into contact with the surface of a rolling member having a transfer layer removably attached to its surface, thereby adhering the transfer layer to the outer surface of the element body continuously or intermittently.

According to the method for manufacturing electronic components of the present invention, for example, by rolling the side (outer surface) of the element body on a transfer layer of constant characteristics and/or constant thickness so that the sides come into continuous contact with each other, an insulating layer can be formed on the desired surface very easily and efficiently.

Preferably, the rolling member includes a first rolling member having the transfer layer on a surface thereof and being removably attached to the first rolling member;
a second rolling member located on the opposite side of the element body from the first rolling member and having a surface that contacts the element body;
The second rolling member is moved relative to the first rolling member so that the distance between them can be changed and the second rolling member is displaced substantially parallel to the first rolling member, so that the element body is rolled on the surface of the first rolling member while being in contact with the surfaces of both the first rolling member and the second rolling member. With this configuration, the element body can be rolled (90 degrees at a time) reliably and efficiently.

In addition, the functional film forming apparatus for electronic components according to the present invention includes:
A functional film forming apparatus for electronic components for forming functional films on a plurality of outer surfaces of an element body for an electronic component, comprising:
A first rolling member having a transfer layer that becomes the functional film removably attached to a surface thereof;
a second rolling member located on the opposite side of the element body from the first rolling member and having a surface that contacts the element body;
The element body is sandwiched between the first rolling member and the second rolling member, and in order to roll on the surface of the first rolling member, the element body has a drive mechanism that moves the second rolling member relative to the first rolling member so that the distance between them is variable and the second rolling member is displaced approximately parallel to the first rolling member.

The surface of the second rolling member may have a removable adhesive layer. Alternatively, the surface of the transfer layer may have an adhesive layer that can adhere to the outer surface of the element body. This configuration can improve adhesion between the element body and the transfer layer. The transfer layer may also have an adhesive property that allows it to adhere to the outer surface of the element body. This configuration eliminates the need to apply an adhesive layer on the transfer layer, simplifying the manufacturing process.

After the element body is fired, it may be rolled on the surface of the rolling member. This configuration makes it possible to fire even an insulating layer with a low melting point.

Also, the element body may be rolled on the surface of the rolling member before being fired, and after the transfer layer is transferred to the outer surface of the element body, the element body may be fired together with the transfer layer. By configuring in this way, the element body and the insulating layer are fired simultaneously at high temperature, improving adhesion.

Preferably, the transfer layer is intermittently and removably attached to the surface of the rolling member, and the transfer layer is intermittently transferred to multiple outer surfaces of the element body. By configuring in this way, an insulating layer can be easily formed on the required surfaces.

Preferably, the outer surface of the element body has a side surface that is continuous along a circumferential direction and an end surface that intersects with a plurality of the side surfaces,
The transfer layer may be formed by rolling the element body on the surface of the rolling member so as to cover the entire outer surface of the element body that is continuous along the circumferential direction. By configuring in this manner, the boundary area of the insulating layer is eliminated and the thickness variation of the insulating layer is also reduced, so that moisture is less likely to enter the internal electrodes, thereby improving reliability.

The transfer layer attached to the surface of the rolling member may have a notch formed therein. The transfer layer may also be transferred to the outer surface of the element body starting from the notch. With this configuration, the transfer layer can be separated from the first transfer member and easily wrapped around the element body.

The transfer layer transferred to the base body may be separated from the transfer layer attached to the surface of the rolling member by pressing the base body to which the transfer layer has been transferred onto the rolling member from above the transfer layer. This configuration makes it easier to cut the transfer layer.

The transfer layer may be intermittently and removably attached to the surface of the rolling member. The transfer layer may be intermittently transferred to a plurality of outer surfaces of the element body.

The method of the present invention may further include a step of cleaning the outer surface of the element body by contacting the outer surface of the element body with a cleaning surface formed on the surface of one of the rolling members when rolling the element body on the surface of the rolling member or on the surface of another rolling member different from the rolling member. By configuring in this way, impurities can be removed, improving reliability.

The transfer layer is preferably a glass sheet or a dielectric sheet. If the transfer layer is a glass sheet, it can be fired at a low temperature. If the transfer layer is a dielectric sheet, it can be fired simultaneously with the body of the element to improve adhesion.

The transfer layer may cover all of the side surfaces of the element body that are continuous along the circumferential direction. This configuration can block the intrusion path to the interface between the insulating layer made of the transfer layer and the element body over the entire periphery of the side surfaces of the element body, further improving the moisture resistance and reliability of the electronic component.

The insulating layer formed by heat-treating the transfer layer does not have to completely cover all of the side surfaces that are continuous along the circumferential direction of the element body, and there may be a gap in the insulating layer on one of the side surfaces of the element body. In other words, on one of the side surfaces of the element body, the edge of the insulating layer is located along a direction perpendicular to the circumferential direction near the center of the side surface far from the corner of the element body, and a part of the side surface of the element body may be exposed from the gap between the edges.

In the method of the present invention, the composition of the insulating layer formed by heat-treating the transfer layer can be made approximately uniform along the circumferential direction. With a uniform composition of the insulating layer, the moisture resistance is also uniform along the circumferential direction, reducing the number of starting points that reduce moisture resistance, improving the reliability of the electronic components. In addition, since the insulating layer can be baked and fired uniformly, the stress acting on the electronic components can be uniformly distributed. Furthermore, by forming the insulating layer using the rolling transfer method, it is easy to form an insulating layer with approximately uniform composition along the circumferential direction.

The thickness of the insulating layer at the corner of the element body can be substantially the same as the thickness of the insulating layer at at least one of the two side surfaces of the element body that sandwich the corner. In particular, by making the thickness of the insulating layer at the corner of the element body the same as other parts, the moisture resistance of the electronic component is improved and the reliability is also improved. Since the insulating layer can be formed by the rolling transfer method, the thickness of the insulating layer at the corner of the element body is likely to be substantially uniform compared to other parts.

The element body may have a laminated structure in which the ceramic layer and the internal electrode layer are laminated. Furthermore, a terminal electrode may be formed on an end face of the element body that intersects with the side face, and the terminal electrode connects to an exposed end of the internal electrode layer. Furthermore, preferably, the edge of the terminal electrode covers the end of the insulating layer. This configuration makes it even more difficult for moisture to penetrate into the element body, improving the moisture resistance of the electronic component and improving its reliability.

FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a multilayer ceramic capacitor according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2A is a cross-sectional view taken along line IIA-IIA shown in FIG. FIG. 2Aa is a partially enlarged view of the cross-sectional view shown in FIG. 2A. FIG. 2Ab is a modified example of the partially enlarged view shown in FIG. 2Aa. FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional view taken along line IIB-IIB shown in FIG. FIG. 3A is a cross-sectional view of a multilayer ceramic capacitor according to another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view of a multilayer ceramic capacitor according to still another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3C is a cross-sectional view of a multilayer ceramic capacitor according to still another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4A is a schematic cross-sectional view parallel to the X-axis and Z-axis, showing a lamination step of green sheets in the process of manufacturing the multilayer ceramic capacitor shown in FIG. FIG. 4B is a schematic cross-sectional view parallel to the Y-axis and Z-axis showing a lamination process of the green sheets shown in FIG. 4A. FIG. 5A is a schematic perspective view of the laminate after the cutting step following the lamination step shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B. FIG. 5B is a schematic perspective view of a laminate after a cutting step in the manufacturing process of a multilayer ceramic capacitor according to another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6A is a schematic perspective view showing a manufacturing process of the multilayer ceramic capacitor of the present invention. FIG. 6B is a schematic perspective view showing a continuation of the step shown in FIG. 6A. FIG. 6C is a schematic perspective view showing a continuation of the step shown in FIG. 6B. FIG. 6D is a schematic perspective view showing a continuation of the step shown in FIG. 6C. FIG. 6E is a schematic perspective view showing a continuation of the step shown in FIG. 6D. FIG. 6F is a schematic perspective view showing a continuation of the step shown in FIG. 6E. FIG. 6G is a schematic perspective view showing a continuation of the step shown in FIG. 6F. FIG. 6H is a schematic perspective view of the laminate separated from the sheet after the step shown in FIG. 6G. FIG. 7A is a schematic perspective view showing a manufacturing process of a multilayer ceramic capacitor according to a modified example of the present invention. FIG. 7B is a schematic perspective view showing a continuation of the step shown in FIG. 7A. FIG. 7C is a schematic perspective view showing a continuation of the step shown in FIG. 7B. FIG. 7D is a schematic perspective view showing a continuation of the step shown in FIG. 7C. FIG. 7E is a schematic perspective view showing a continuation of the step shown in FIG. 7D. FIG. 7F is a schematic perspective view showing a continuation of the step shown in FIG. 7E. FIG. 8A is a schematic perspective view showing a manufacturing process of a multilayer ceramic capacitor according to another modified example of the present invention. FIG. 8B is a schematic perspective view showing a continuation of the step shown in FIG. 8A. FIG. 8C is a schematic perspective view showing a continuation of the step shown in FIG. 8B. FIG. 8D is a schematic perspective view showing a continuation of the step shown in FIG. 8C. FIG. 8E is a schematic perspective view showing a continuation of the step shown in FIG. 8D. FIG. 8F is a schematic perspective view showing a continuation of the step shown in FIG. 8E. FIG. 8G is a schematic perspective view of the laminate separated from the sheet after the step shown in FIG. 8F. FIG. 9A is a schematic perspective view showing a step of cleaning the surface of the laminate. FIG. 9B is a schematic perspective view showing a continuation of the step shown in FIG. 9A. FIG. 10A is a schematic perspective view showing a manufacturing process of a multilayer ceramic capacitor in accordance with still another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10B is a schematic perspective view showing a continuation of the step shown in FIG. 10A. FIG. 10C is a schematic perspective view showing a continuation of the step shown in FIG. 10B. FIG. 10D is a schematic perspective view showing a continuation of the step shown in FIG. 10C. FIG. 10E is a schematic perspective view showing a continuation of the step shown in FIG. 10D. FIG. 10F is a schematic perspective view showing a continuation of the step shown in FIG. 10E. FIG. 10G is a schematic perspective view of the laminate separated from the sheet after the step shown in FIG. 10F.

The present invention will now be described with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings.

First embodiment (overall configuration of multilayer ceramic capacitor)
Before describing the method for manufacturing an electronic component according to this embodiment, the overall configuration of a multilayer ceramic capacitor will be described.

As shown in FIG. 1, the multilayer ceramic capacitor 2 according to this embodiment has a laminate (element body) 4 made of a ceramic sintered body, a first terminal electrode 6, and a second terminal electrode 8.

As shown in FIG. 1, the laminate 4 has inner dielectric layers (ceramic layers) 10 and internal electrode layers 12 that are substantially parallel to a plane including the X-axis and Y-axis, and the internal electrode layers 12 are alternately stacked between the inner dielectric layers 10 along the direction of the Z-axis. Here, "substantially parallel" means that most of the portions are parallel, but there may be some portions that are not parallel, and the internal electrode layers 12 and the inner dielectric layers 10 may be somewhat uneven or tilted. In the figure, the X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis are approximately perpendicular to each other.

The portion where the inner dielectric layers 10 and the internal electrode layers 12 are alternately stacked is the interior region 13. The laminate 4 also has exterior regions 11 on both end faces in the stacking direction Z (Z-axis). The exterior region 11 is formed by stacking one or more outer dielectric layers. In the following, the "inner dielectric layer 10" and the "outer dielectric layer" may be collectively referred to as the "dielectric layer (ceramic layer)".

The materials of the dielectric layers constituting the inner dielectric layer 10 and the exterior region 11 may be the same or different and are not particularly limited, and may be composed mainly of, for example, a dielectric material with a perovskite structure such as _ABO3 or an alkali niobate ceramic. In _ABO3 , A is, for example, at least one of Ca, Ba, Sr, etc., and B is at least one of Ti, Zr, etc. The molar ratio of A/B is not particularly limited and is 0.980 to 1.020.

The number of layers of the inner dielectric layer 10 and the outer dielectric layer may be appropriately determined depending on the application, etc. The thickness td of the inner dielectric layer 10 shown in FIG. 2A is, for example, 0.1 μm to 40 μm. The ratio of the thickness td of the inner dielectric layer 10 to the thickness te of the internal electrode layer 12 is not particularly limited, but it is preferable that td/te is 2 to 0.5. In addition, the ratio of the thickness t0 of the exterior region 11 (see FIG. 1) to the height H0 of the element 3 (see FIG. 2A) is not particularly limited, but it is preferable that t0/H0 is 0.01 to 0.1.

The shape and size of the element 3 may be determined appropriately depending on the purpose and application, but it is preferable that the width W0 in the X-axis direction is 0.1 mm to 3.2 mm, the length L0 in the Y-axis direction is 0.2 mm to 3.2 mm, and the height H0 in the Z-axis direction is 0.1 mm to 3.2 mm. It is preferable that the multilayer ceramic capacitor 2 including the element 3, the first terminal electrode 6, and the second terminal electrode 8, is also within these ranges.

As shown in FIG. 1, one of the alternately stacked internal electrode layers 12 has a lead portion 12α electrically connected to the inside of the first terminal electrode 6 formed on one end face 5e of the laminate 4 in the Y-axis direction. The other of the alternately stacked internal electrode layers 12 has a lead portion 12β electrically connected to the inside of the second terminal electrode 8 formed on the other end face 5f of the laminate 4 in the Y-axis direction.

The interior region 13 has a capacitance region 14 and lead-out regions 15A and 15B. The capacitance region 14 is a region where the internal electrode layers 12 are stacked in the stacking direction with the inner dielectric layer 10 sandwiched between them. The lead-out region 15A is a region located between the lead-out portions 12α of the internal electrode layers 12 that connect to the terminal electrodes 6. The lead-out region 15B is a region located between the lead-out portions 12β of the internal electrode layers 12 that connect to the terminal electrodes 8.

The conductive material contained in the internal electrode layer 12 is not particularly limited, and metals such as Ni, Cu, Ag, Pd, Al, Pt, etc., or alloys thereof can be used. As the Ni alloy, an alloy of Ni and one or more elements selected from Mn, Cr, Co, and Al is preferable, and the Ni content in the alloy is preferably 95% by weight or more. Note that Ni or the Ni alloy may contain various trace components such as P at about 0.1% by weight or less. The internal electrode layer 12 may be formed using a commercially available electrode paste, and the thickness of the internal electrode layer 12 may be appropriately determined depending on the application, etc.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2A, the four side surfaces 5a to 5d of the laminate 4 as the element body are continuously covered with insulating layers 16a to 16d that are continuous along the circumferential direction. That is, the insulating layers 16a to 16d are continuously formed along the circumferential direction on the side surfaces 5a, 5c located on both sides along the Z axis of the laminate 4, and the side surfaces 5b, 5d located on both sides along the X axis of the laminate 4, so as to cover the respective side surfaces 5a to 5d. Note that in this specification, the direction around the Y axis of the laminate, including the side surfaces 5a to 5d, is sometimes referred to as the circumferential direction or outer periphery direction.

In this embodiment, the insulating layers 16a to 16d are substantially identical in configuration. For ease of explanation, the following will only describe insulating layers 16a and 16b, and will omit a description of insulating layers 16c and 16d, unless otherwise specified.

As shown in FIG. 2Aa, the insulating layer 16a formed on the side surface 5a located on the upper side along the Z axis of the laminate 4 has a substantially uniform thickness tz in the Z axis direction. Here, the thickness tz refers to the shortest distance from the outer peripheral surface 16a1 of the insulating layer 16a, which is approximately parallel to the X-Y plane, to the side surface 5a of the laminate 4. Also, the insulating layer 16b formed on the side surface 5b located on one side along the X axis of the laminate 4 has a substantially uniform thickness tx in the X axis direction. Here, the thickness tx refers to the shortest distance from the outer peripheral surface 16b1 of the insulating layer 16b, which is approximately parallel to the Y-Z plane, to the side surface 5b of the laminate 4. In this embodiment, the thickness tx and the thickness tz are substantially the same.

In addition, in this embodiment, it is preferable that a rounded portion with a predetermined radius of curvature is formed at the corner 17 where the side surface 5a and the side surface 5b intersect, and the thickness tp of the insulating layer 16p at the corner 17 is substantially the same as at least one of the thickness tx and the thickness tz, and preferably both. Note that in this specification, the insulating layers 16a to 16d are sometimes used to include the insulating layer 16p at the corner 17.

Here, corner 17 means a corner where side 5a and side 5b of laminate 4 intersect when the interface between laminate 4 and insulating layers 16a and 16b is clearly visible. Also, when the interface between laminate 4 and insulating layers 16a and 16b is not clearly visible, corner 17 means a corner where outer peripheral surfaces 16a1 of insulating layer 16a intersect with outer peripheral surface 16b1 of insulating layer 16b.

For example, a corner is defined as an area centered on a line P1 on the outer periphery of the insulating layer that is closest to the intersection line P0 between the X-Y plane formed by the extension of the outer periphery 16a1 of the insulating layer 16a and the Y-Z plane formed by the extension of the outer periphery 16b1 of the insulating layer 16b. In addition, the thickness tp of the insulating layer at the corner 17 is defined as the shortest distance from P1 to the laminate 4.

Note that "thickness tp of the insulating layer at corner portion 17 is substantially the same as at least one of thickness tx and thickness tz, and preferably both" is determined, for example, as follows.

The thickness tp of the insulating layer at the corner 17 is measured at 10 or more points on different cross sections in the Y-axis direction, and the average value tpm and variation σpm are determined. In addition, at the center position along the X-axis direction of the laminate 4, the tz of the insulating layer 16a is measured at 10 or more points on different cross sections in the Y-axis direction, and the average value tzm and variation σzm are determined. Similarly, at the center position along the Z-axis direction of the laminate 4, the tx of the insulating layer 16b is measured at 10 or more points on different cross sections in the Y-axis direction, and the average value txm and variation σxm are determined.

If the difference between the average thickness tpm of the insulating layer at the corner 17 and the average thickness tzm of the insulating layer 16a1 is less than 1/10 μm of tzm, they are determined to be substantially the same. The difference between the average thickness tpm of the insulating layer at the corner 17 and the average thickness txm of the insulating layer 16b1 can also be determined in the same manner.

In this embodiment, insulating layer 16a and insulating layer 16b are smoothly and uniformly connected at corner 17, there is substantially no gap from insulating layer 16a to insulating layer 16b, and there is no interface between insulating layer 16a and insulating layer 16b.

In this embodiment, the thickness of each of the insulating layers 16a to 16d and the thickness (average and variation) of the insulating layer 16p at each corner 17 can be determined in the same manner as above, and all of these thicknesses can be made substantially the same.

The thickness of the insulating layers 16a to 16d and 16p is preferably within the range of 3 μm to 40 μm, more preferably 3 to 30 μm, and particularly preferably 3 to 20 μm, and can be made relatively thin and uniform. This reduces the effect of the thermal expansion coefficient of the insulating layers, and also suppresses structural defects due to the difference in the thermal expansion coefficient between the laminate 4 and the insulating layers. In addition, in this embodiment, the insulating layers 16b and 16d serve as side gap insulating layers, and the exposed end portions of the internal electrode layers 12 in the X-axis direction can be covered with the insulating layers 16b and 16d, providing sufficient protection. In addition, in this embodiment, there is little variation in the thickness of each of the insulating layers 16a to 16d and 16p.

By making the thickness of the insulating layer uniform, the starting points that reduce moisture resistance are reduced, improving the moisture resistance of electronic components and improving their reliability. Since the insulating layer can be formed by the rolling transfer method, the thickness of the insulating layer tends to be substantially uniform along the circumferential direction.

In this embodiment, the outer peripheral surface of the insulating layer 16p at the corner 17 does not have to be rounded. For example, as shown in FIG. 2Ab, when the corner 17 of the laminate 4 is chamfered, the outer peripheral surface of the insulating layer 16p is flat along the C-plane of the laminate 4. In this case, P1 is located on the outer peripheral surface of the insulating layer 16p, which is a flat surface along the C-plane. In other embodiments of this embodiment, the corner 17 may have substantially no rounded portion or C-chamfered portion, in which case P0 and P1 become as close as possible.

As shown in FIG. 1, it is preferable that the insulating layers 16a, 16c (similarly for the insulating layers 16b, 16d, not shown, omitted below) do not substantially cover the end faces 5e, 5f located at both ends in the Y-axis direction of the laminate 4. In other words, it is preferable that the insulating layers 16a, 16c do not cover the connection ends of the lead portions 12α or 12β of the internal electrode layers 12 exposed at the end faces 5e, 5f located at both ends in the Y-axis direction of the laminate 4. This is because the terminal electrodes 6, 8 need to be formed on the outer surfaces 5e, 5f located at both ends in the Y-axis direction of the laminate 4 and connected to the lead portions 12α or 12β of the internal electrode layers 12.

In this embodiment, the insulating layers 16a to 16d (including 16p, below) are made of a material with a melting point lower than that of the dielectric layers 10 and 11 of the element body 4, and the main component of the insulating layers 16a to 16d is preferably glass containing 25% or more by weight of Si.

By making the insulating layers 16a to 16d mainly of glass, the effect of suppressing peeling of the terminal electrodes 6, 8 is enhanced. This is thought to be because the more Si contained in the glass, which is the main component of the insulating layers, the better the plating resistance of the insulating layers, and the more the deterioration caused by plating can be suppressed. In addition, by making the glass, which is the main component of the insulating layers 16a to 16d, contain 25% or more Si by weight, a diffusion layer in which Si is diffused can be formed. This strengthens the bond between the insulating layers 16a to 16d and the terminal electrodes 6, 8. Therefore, it is preferable that the main component of the insulating layers 16a to 16d in this embodiment is made of glass containing 25% to 70% by weight of Si.

The main component of the insulating layer refers to a component contained in the insulating layer at 40 vol% or more, and preferably, the main component of the insulating layer refers to a component contained in the insulating layer at 60 vol% or more.

In this embodiment, the insulating layers 16a to 16d may contain, in addition to Si, Mg, Ca, Sr, Ba, Li, Na, K, Ti, Zr, B, P, Zn, Al, etc.

In addition, by constructing the insulating layers from glass components, the adhesive strength between the insulating layers 16a-16d and the laminate 4 is improved. This is thought to be because a reaction phase is formed at the interface between the glass and the laminate 4, which provides better adhesion between the glass and the laminate 4 than other insulating materials.

Furthermore, glass has higher insulating properties than ceramic. Therefore, when the insulating layers 16a to 16d are mainly composed of glass, the occurrence rate of short circuits can be reduced even if the distance between the opposing terminal electrodes 6 and 8 is shortened, compared to when the insulating layers 16a to 16d are mainly composed of ceramic.

The melting point (softening point) of the glass contained in the insulating layers 16a to 16d of this embodiment is preferably 600°C to 950°C. This makes it possible to prevent grain growth of the ceramic particles in the dielectric layers when the insulating layers 16a to 16d are baked, and to suppress deterioration of properties such as reliability. From the above viewpoint, it is more preferable that the melting point (softening point) of the glass contained in the insulating layers 16a to 16d of this embodiment is 600°C to 850°C.

The components other than glass contained in the insulating layers 16a to 16d of this embodiment are not particularly limited, and may include _, for example, ceramic filler, _BaTiO3 , _CaTiO3 , _Al2O3 , _CaZrO3 , _MgO , _ZrO2 , _Cr2O3 , CoO, etc.

When the insulating layers 16a to 16d are primarily made of glass, the incidence of short circuits can be reduced even if the terminal electrodes 6 and 8 are configured to widely cover the Y-axis end of the X-axis end face of the laminate 4 and the Y-axis end of the Z-axis end face, compared to when they are made of ceramic.

In this embodiment, a reaction phase may be formed at the interface between the insulating layers 16a-16d and the dielectric layers 10, 11, in which at least one of the components of the insulating layers 16a-16d has diffused into the dielectric layers 10, 11. By having a reaction phase at the interface between the insulating layers 16a-16d and the inner dielectric layer 10, the side surfaces 5a-5d of the laminate 4 are filled with glass, minimizing the void ratio at the interface. This improves the insulation of the side surfaces of the laminate 4, and improves the voltage resistance.

In addition, by having a reactive phase at the interface between the dielectric layer and the insulating layers 16a to 16d, it is possible to improve the adhesion at the interface between the dielectric layer and the insulating layers 16a to 16d. This makes it possible to suppress delamination between the laminate 4 and the insulating layers 16a to 16d and to increase the flexural strength.

To identify the reaction phase, for example, STEM-EDS analysis of the Si element is performed on the interface between the dielectric layer of the laminate 4 and the insulating layers 16a to 16d, mapping data of the Si element is obtained, and the locations where the Si element is present can be identified as reaction phases.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, both ends of the terminal electrodes 6 and 8 in the Z-axis direction are formed so as to cover both ends of the insulating layers 16a and 16c in the Y-axis direction. Also, as shown in FIG. 2B, both ends of the terminal electrodes 6 and 8 in the X-axis direction are formed so as to cover both ends of the insulating layers 16b and 16d in the Y-axis direction.

By configuring it in this way, the terminal electrodes 6, 8 can completely cover the ends of the interfaces between the insulating layers 16a-16d and the laminate 4 at the end faces 5e, 5f of the laminate 4, thereby improving durability and moisture resistance.

The thickness of the terminal electrodes 6, 8 may be determined appropriately depending on the application, etc.

In this embodiment, when the average weight ratio of Si contained in the glass of the insulating layers 16a to 16d is GSi and the average weight ratio of Si contained in the glass of the terminal electrodes 6 and 8 is TSi, it is preferable that GSi/TSi satisfies 1.0<GSi/TSi≦15.0.

When GSi/TSi is 1.0<GSi/TSi≦15.0, a diffusion layer in which Si diffuses can be formed, and the capacitance can be increased and the strength of the terminal electrode can be improved compared to when GSi/TSi is 1.0 or less. Also, when GSi/TSi is 1.0<GSi/TSi≦15.0, the capacitance can be increased and the results of the limit deflection test can be improved compared to when GSi/TSi is greater than 15.0. It is more preferable that GSi/TSi is 2.0 to 8.0.

(Manufacturing method of multilayer ceramic capacitors)
Next, a method for manufacturing the multilayer ceramic capacitor 2 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be specifically described.

(Laminate manufacturing process)
First, a manufacturing process of the laminate 4 which becomes the element body will be described. An inner green sheet 10a shown in Fig. 4A which will constitute the inner dielectric layer 10 shown in Fig. 1 after firing, and an outer green sheet 11a shown in Fig. 4A which will constitute the exterior region 11 shown in Fig. 1 are prepared.

To form these green sheets 10a and 11a, first, a paste for the inner green sheet and a paste for the outer green sheet are prepared. The paste for the inner green sheet and the paste for the outer green sheet are usually composed of an organic solvent-based paste obtained by kneading ceramic powder with an organic vehicle, or a water-based paste.

The raw ceramic powder material can be appropriately selected from composite oxides and various compounds that become oxides, such as carbonates, nitrates, hydroxides, and organometallic compounds, and can be mixed and used. In this embodiment, the raw ceramic powder material is used as a powder with an average particle size of 0.45 μm or less, preferably about 0.05 to 0.3 μm. In order to make the inner green sheet extremely thin, it is desirable to use a powder that is finer than the thickness of the green sheet.

An organic vehicle is a binder dissolved in an organic solvent. There are no particular limitations on the binder used in the organic vehicle, and it may be appropriately selected from various common binders such as ethyl cellulose and polyvinyl butyral. There are no particular limitations on the organic solvent used, and it may be appropriately selected from various organic solvents such as alcohol, acetone, and toluene.

The green sheet paste may contain additives selected from various dispersants, plasticizers, dielectrics, secondary component compounds, glass frit, insulators, etc., as necessary. Examples of plasticizers include phthalates such as dioctyl phthalate and benzyl butyl phthalate, adipic acid, phosphate esters, and glycols.

Next, the internal electrode pattern layer 12a shown in FIG. 4A is formed, which will constitute the internal electrode layer 12 shown in FIG. 1 after firing. To this end, a paste for the internal electrode layer is prepared. The paste for the internal electrode layer is prepared by kneading the conductive material made of the various conductive metals and alloys described above with the organic vehicle described above. The metal paste (terminal electrode paste) that will constitute the terminal electrodes 6, 8 shown in FIG. 1 after firing may be prepared in the same manner as the paste for the internal electrode layer described above.

Using the inner green sheet paste and the internal electrode layer paste prepared above, the inner green sheets 10a and the internal electrode pattern layers 12a are alternately laminated as shown in Figures 4A and 4B to produce an inner laminate. Then, after producing the inner laminate, the outer green sheet paste is used to form the outer green sheet 11a, which is then pressed in the lamination direction to obtain a green laminate.

In addition to the above, the green laminate may be manufactured by laminating a predetermined number of inner green sheets 10a and internal electrode pattern layers 12a alternately directly onto the outer green sheet 11a, and then applying pressure in the lamination direction to obtain the green laminate.

Specifically, first, an inner green sheet 10a is formed on a carrier sheet (e.g., a PET film) as a support by a doctor blade method or the like. After being formed on the carrier sheet, the inner green sheet 10a is dried. Next, an inner electrode pattern layer 12a is formed on the surface of the inner green sheet 10a using an internal electrode layer paste, to obtain an inner green sheet 10a having an internal electrode pattern layer 12a. After stacking the inner green sheets 10a having the internal electrode pattern layer 12a, these may be stacked to obtain a green laminate.

Next, the green laminate is cut along the C1 and C2 cut surfaces in Figures 4A and 4B to obtain green chips 4a. C1 is a cut surface parallel to the Y-Z axis plane, and C2 is a cut surface parallel to the Z-X axis plane.

As shown in FIG. 4B, the C2 cut surfaces on both sides of the C2 cut surface that cuts the internal electrode pattern layer 12a in the nth layer cut the gaps in the internal electrode pattern layer 12a. Also, the C2 cut surface that cuts the internal electrode pattern layer 12a in the nth layer cuts the gaps in the internal electrode pattern layer 12a in the (n+1)th layer.

By using this cutting method to obtain the green chip 4a shown in Figure 5A, the nth layer of the internal electrode pattern layer 12a of the green chip 4a is exposed at one end face 5e in the Y-axis direction of the green chip 4a, but not exposed at the other end face 5f. Conversely, the n+1th layer of the internal electrode pattern layer 12a of the green chip 4a is not exposed at one bottom face 5e in the Y-axis direction of the green chip 4a, but is exposed at the other bottom face 5f.

Furthermore, in the C1 cut surface of the green chip 4a shown in FIG. 4A, i.e., in the side surfaces 5b and 5d facing the X-axis direction of the green chip 4a shown in FIG. 5A, the internal electrode pattern layer 12a is exposed in all layers. The method for forming the internal electrode pattern layer 12a is not particularly limited, and it may be formed by a printing method, a transfer method, or a thin film formation method such as deposition or sputtering.

In this embodiment, the binder removal process may be performed at a holding temperature of, for example, 200°C to 400°C. The firing process may be performed in, for example, a reducing atmosphere, and the annealing process may be performed in a neutral or weakly oxidizing atmosphere. Other firing and annealing conditions include, for example, a firing holding temperature of 1000°C to 1300°C, and an annealing holding temperature of 500°C to 1100°C. The binder removal process, firing process, and annealing process may be performed consecutively or independently.

In the above-described embodiment, the green laminate shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B is singulated into green chips 4a, and then the green chips 4a are fired to form the laminate 4. However, the green laminate shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B may be fired to form a sintered body, and then the sintered body may be cut to form the individual laminates 4.

The corners of the laminate 4 obtained as described above may be chamfered using a barrel or the like to form an R surface as shown in FIG. 2Aa or a C surface as shown in FIG. 2Ab. In addition, the end faces 5e and 5f of the laminate 4 may be polished, for example, by barrel polishing or sandblasting, as necessary.

(Insulating layer forming process)
Next, a process for forming an insulating layer (functional film) on the outer periphery of the laminate 4 that becomes the element body will be described. First, a functional film forming apparatus of this embodiment will be described.

As shown in FIG. 6A, the functional film forming device of this embodiment has a first rolling member 20, a second rolling member 22, and a drive mechanism (not shown) that moves them relative to one another. The drive mechanism is composed of, for example, a motor, a pressure cylinder, etc. Examples of the motor include a rotary type and a linear type. The drive mechanism drives the second rolling member 22 to move parallel to the first rolling member 20 along the surface direction so that the mutual distance can be changed in response to the radius of rotation that changes as the laminate 4 rolls.

In this embodiment, a winding glass sheet 24 is placed on the upper surface of the first rolling member 20, and an adhesive sheet 26 is provided on the lower surface of the second rolling member 22. As shown in FIG. 6B, a single or multiple laminates 4 are sandwiched between the first rolling member 20 and the second rolling member 22, and in this embodiment, the side surface 5a of the laminate 4 is first attached to the adhesive sheet 26 to form an adhesive layer 26a. Note that, although FIG. 6A shows the laminate 4 attached to the adhesive sheet 26 on the lower surface of the second rolling member 22, this is not limiting, and the laminate 4 may be initially only placed on the sheet 24 of the first rolling member 20.

The first rolling member 20 and the second rolling member 22 may be made of the same material or different materials. The first rolling member 20 and the second rolling member 22 may be, for example, a plate-like or sheet-like member having a certain degree of rigidity, and the material is not particularly limited and may be any of metal, ceramic, plastic, etc.

The glass sheet 24 to be wrapped is not particularly limited as long as it is a sheet that becomes the insulating layers 16a to 16d shown in FIG. 2A after heat treatment, and examples include a resin sheet with glass powder dispersed therein, or a semi-hardened glass sheet.

For example, the glass sheet 24 can be formed by kneading the glass powder raw material that constitutes the above-mentioned glass component with a binder and a dispersion medium to make a glass slurry, and then forming the glass slurry into a sheet. The glass sheet 24 is placed on the surface of the first rolling member 20 so that it can be peeled off but does not move laterally.

The adhesive layer 26a is disposed on the underside of the second rolling member 22 so as to be peelable and not to shift laterally. The adhesive layer 26 may be, for example, a double-sided adhesive sheet, and preferably has a stronger adhesive strength to the laminate 4 than to the underside of the second rolling member 22. The adhesive layer 26 is, for example, made of a resin such as synthetic polymers such as acrylic, polyvinyl butyral, acrylic, polyvinyl alcohol, polyvinyl acetate, and epoxy, or natural polymers such as rosin and terpene.

As shown in FIG. 6B, the second rolling member 22 is lowered relative to the first rolling member 20, and the second rolling member 22 presses the laminate 4 toward the first rolling member 20. As a result, part of the adhesive layer 26 is transferred to the side surface 5a of the laminate 4 to become an adhesive film 26a. Next, as shown in FIG. 6C, while the second rolling member 22 presses the laminate 4 relative to the first rolling member 20 (the reverse may be acceptable/same below), the second rolling member 22 is moved in a direction (indicated by an arrow) that shifts parallel to the first rolling member 20.

The stack 4 can be rolled on the first rolling member 20 (or the second rolling member 22) in the circumferential direction of the sides 5a to 5d in accordance with the movement of the second rolling member 22 relative to the first rolling member 20. Note that when rolling the stack 4, the relative distance of the second rolling member 22 relative to the first rolling member 20 may change with the change in the rolling radius of the stack 4. In other words, it is preferable that the stack 4 is always in contact with both the first rolling member and the second rolling member while rolling.

As shown in FIG. 6C, as the laminate 4 rolls, the adhesive layer 26a formed on the side surface 5a of the laminate 4 is cut off from the underside of the second rolling member 22 and transferred. At the same time, the adhesive sheet 26 is attached to the side surface 5b of the laminate 4, forming an adhesive layer 26b. The wrapping glass sheet 24 may have a notch 25 formed therein, and it is preferable that the position of the notch 25 coincides with the position of the rolling start point of the side surface 5a of the laminate 4 on the surface of the first rolling member 20.

When the second rolling member 22 is further moved in the same direction (the direction of the arrow), the laminate 4 rolls as shown in FIG. 6D, and the adhesive layer 26a formed on the side surface 5a of the laminate 4 adheres to the winding glass sheet 24, forming an outer peripheral film 24a that becomes the insulating layer 16a. In addition, the adhesive sheet 26 adheres to the side surface 5c of the laminate 4, forming an adhesive layer 26c.

When the second rolling member 22 is further moved in the same direction (the direction of the arrow), as shown in FIG. 6E, the glass sheet 24 is separated from the glass sheet 24 located on the surface of the first rolling member 20 at the cut 25 and transferred to the side surface 5a of the laminate 4 to form the peripheral film 24a. Note that if the peripheral film 24a can be transferred to the side surface 5a of the laminate 4, the cut 25 in the glass sheet 24 is not necessarily required.

When the second rolling member 22 is further moved in the same direction, as shown in FIG. 6F, the adhesive layer 26b formed on the side surface 5b of the laminate 4 adheres to the winding glass sheet 24, forming an outer peripheral film 24b that serves as an insulating layer. In addition, the adhesive sheet 26 adheres to the side surface 5d of the laminate 4, forming an adhesive layer 26d.

Similarly, by moving the second rolling member 22 in the same direction and rolling the laminate 4, as shown in FIG. 6G, the winding glass sheet 24 adheres to the adhesive layer 26c on the side surface 5c of the laminate 4, forming an outer peripheral film 24c that serves as an insulating layer. Furthermore, the winding glass sheet 24 adheres to the adhesive layer 26d on the side surface 5d of the laminate 4, forming an outer peripheral film 24d that serves as an insulating layer.

Furthermore, by pressing the laminate 4 against the first rolling member 20 from the top of the second rolling member 22 to which the laminate 4 is attached, the outer peripheral film 24d can be separated from the glass sheet 24 located on the first rolling member 20. In this way, the end of the outer peripheral film 24a and the end of the outer peripheral film 24d are joined, and a laminate 4 wrapped around the outer peripheral films 24a to 24d is obtained, as shown in FIG. 6H.

Next, the laminate 4 with the outer peripheral films 24a to 24d wrapped around it is dried and debindered as necessary, and then baked to obtain the laminate 4 with the insulating layers 16a to 16d formed as shown in FIG. 2A. The baking temperature for the outer peripheral films 24a to 24d is preferably 0°C to 150°C, more preferably 10°C to 50°C higher than the melting point (softening point) of the glass contained in the insulating layers 16a to 16d.

If necessary, before the baking process, the laminate 4 with the outer peripheral films 24a-24d wrapped around it may be rolled between the first rolling member 20 and the second rolling member 22 as described above, and one or more layers of similar outer peripheral films 24a-24d may be formed on the outer peripheral films 24a-24d. Also, if necessary, before the baking process, the laminate 4 with the outer peripheral films 24a-24d wrapped around it may be deburred by barrel processing or the like.

After forming the laminate 4 with the insulating layers 16a to 16d, terminal electrodes 6 and 8 are formed on the Y-axis end faces 5e and 5f of the laminate 4, as shown in FIG. 1. To form the terminal electrodes 6 and 8, a metal paste is applied to both end faces in the Y-axis direction of the laminate 4 and baked to form a metal paste baked film that serves as the electrode film of the terminal electrodes 6 and 8. There are no particular limitations on the method for forming the electrode film of the terminal electrodes 6 and 8, and any appropriate method such as application and baking of a metal paste, plating, vapor deposition, or sputtering can be used.

When applying the metal paste by dipping to the end faces in the Y-axis direction of the laminate 4, it is preferable to apply the metal paste so that it also spreads over the end faces in the X-axis direction and the Z-axis direction of the laminate 4. The width of the spread in the Y-axis direction is preferably 50 μm to 200 μm. The width of the spread can be controlled by adjusting the viscosity of the metal paste and the dipping conditions. The baking temperature of the metal paste is preferably 0°C to 50°C higher than the melting point (softening point) of the glass contained in the terminal electrodes 6, 8.

A coating layer may be formed on the surface of the electrode film of the terminal electrodes 6, 8 by plating or sputtering. The terminal electrodes 6, 8 are formed after the insulating layers 16a to 16d are formed.

(Summary of the embodiment)

In this embodiment, the thickness of the adhesive sheet 26 shown in Figures 6A to 6G is 0.3 μm to 4 μm, and is preferably about 1/5 to 1/20 of the thickness of the glass sheet 24. Since the adhesive sheet 26 is thin enough, as shown in Figure 6G, the end of the outer peripheral film 24a and the end of the outer peripheral film 24d made of the glass sheet 24 are joined without the adhesive sheet 26 getting in the way, and a laminate 4 in which the outer peripheral films 24a to 24d are continuously wrapped around without interruption can be obtained. Therefore, there is substantially no gap between the formed insulating layer 16a and insulating layer 16d, and the starting point of cracks is suppressed.

As described above, the method for manufacturing the multilayer ceramic capacitor 2 according to this embodiment includes a step (rolling transfer method) of rolling the side surfaces 5a-5d of the laminate 4 so that they are in continuous contact with each other on a glass sheet (transfer layer) 24 of a certain thickness, and continuously attaching the outer peripheral films 24a-24d to the side surfaces of the laminate 4. This makes it extremely easy to manufacture the multilayer ceramic capacitor 2 according to this embodiment.

The glass sheets 24 are attached to the sides 5a-5d of the laminate 4 after firing, for example, and baked to form the insulating layers 16a-16d, part of which becomes the side gap insulating layer. The insulating layers 16a-16d are made of a material with a lower melting point than the dielectric layers 10, 11 of the laminate 4, and therefore have a baking temperature lower than the firing temperature of the laminate 4. Therefore, the baking temperature for forming the insulating layers 16a-16d has little effect on the laminate 4.

In other words, according to this embodiment, even if the laminated ceramic capacitor 2 is small in size, it can be formed continuously on multiple side surfaces 5a to 5d of the element body 4, and the characteristics of the insulating layers 16a to 16p can be made substantially uniform along the circumferential direction. Therefore, even if the laminated ceramic capacitor 2 is small in size, the insulating layers 16a to 16p do not easily peel off from the corners 17 of the element body 4, and there is little risk of short circuits or other defects occurring.

In addition, in this embodiment, the side gap insulating layer is formed by the rolling transfer method, so unlike the coating method, no insulating layer is formed in unnecessary areas. Therefore, the insulating layers 16a to 16e are not substantially formed on the end faces 5e, 5f of the laminate 4 where the terminal electrodes 6, 8 are formed and connected to the internal electrode layer 12. As a result, even if the laminate 4 as the element body is miniaturized, the connection reliability between the terminal electrodes 6, 8 and the internal electrode layer 12 is improved. Note that "insulating layers 16a to 16e are not substantially formed on the end faces 5e, 5f of the laminate 4" means that almost no insulating layers are formed compared to the coating method.

The insulating layers 16a-16d in the multilayer ceramic capacitor 2 of this embodiment are insulating layers that continuously cover the multiple side surfaces 5a-5d in the circumferential direction, so they are formed with a substantially constant thickness even in areas other than the side gap insulating layers. In particular, as shown in FIG. 2Aa or FIG. 2Ab, the insulating layers 16p have a constant thickness tp even at the corners 17 of the side surfaces 5a, 5b of the laminate 4. Also, unlike the edges of an insulating layer formed by a coating method, in the multilayer ceramic capacitor 2 of this embodiment, it is not necessary to position the edges of the insulating layers near the corners 17 of the laminate 4.

In conventional multilayer ceramic capacitors, the edge of the insulating layer formed by the coating method must be located near the corner 17 of the laminate 4 so as not to narrow the area of the end faces 5e, 5f of the laminate 4 that are the connection end faces with the terminal electrodes 6, 8. In contrast, in the multilayer ceramic capacitor 2 of this embodiment, the insulating layers 16a to 16d can be formed by the rolling transfer method, so that the insulating layer 16p is formed to a constant thickness compared to other parts even near the corner 17 of the laminate 4, and unlike the conventional method, the edge of the insulating layer with a thin thickness is not formed near the corner 17. Therefore, it is possible to effectively prevent the intrusion of moisture, etc., and the moisture resistance and reliability of the multilayer ceramic capacitor 2 are improved, and the insulating layer is not easily peeled off from the corners of the element body, so there is little risk of short circuit defects, etc.

Insulating layers 16a-16d (including 16p; the same applies below) have a main component of glass. Insulating layers 16a-16d, which are mainly composed of glass, have a high density and excellent moisture resistance compared to ceramic layers composed of dielectric layers 10, 11, etc., which place importance on dielectric properties. Therefore, insulating layers 16a-16d can effectively protect the exposed ends of internal electrode layers 12 on the side surfaces of laminate 4, further improving reliability.

In addition, the insulating layers 16a to 16d cover all of the side surfaces 5a to 5d that are continuous along the circumferential direction of the laminate 4. This configuration can block the intrusion paths to the interfaces between the insulating layers 16a to 16d and the laminate 4 all around the sides 5a to 5d of the laminate 4, further improving the moisture resistance and reliability of the laminated ceramic capacitor 2, and preventing the insulating layers from peeling off easily from the corners of the element body, reducing the risk of short circuits and other defects.

The insulating layers 16a-16d do not have to completely cover all of the side surfaces 5a-5d that are continuous along the circumferential direction of the laminate 4, and there may be a gap in the insulating layer 16a on one of the side surfaces 5a-5d, for example, on side surface 5a. In other words, on one of the side surfaces 5a-5d of the laminate 4 (for example, 5a), the edge of the insulating layer 16a is located along a direction perpendicular to the circumferential direction near the center in the X-axis direction of the side surface 5a that is far from the corner of the laminate 4, and part of the side surface 5a of the laminate 4 may be exposed from the gap between the edges.

To form such an insulating layer around the side of the laminate 4, the glass sheet 24 can be started to be wound from near the center of the X-axis direction on the side 4a of the laminate 4, and ended to be wound near the center of the X-axis direction on the same side 4a of the laminate 4.

In this embodiment, the composition of the insulating layers 16a to 16d can be made approximately uniform along the circumferential direction. Since the insulating layers 16a to 16d have a uniform composition, the moisture resistance is also uniform along the circumferential direction, reducing the number of starting points that reduce moisture resistance, and improving the reliability of the multilayer ceramic capacitor 2. Note that by forming the insulating layers 16a to 16d by the rolling transfer method, it is easy to form the insulating layers 16a to 16d with approximately uniform composition along the circumferential direction.

In addition, in this embodiment, the thickness of the insulating layers 16a to 16d can be formed by baking the glass sheet 24 wound in one or more layers, and can be, for example, 3 μm to 40 μm. Since the insulating layers 16a to 16d are formed from glass sheets of uniform thickness, the thickness of the insulating layers 16a to 16d is substantially uniform along the circumferential direction. By making the thickness of the insulating layers 16a to 16d uniform, the starting points that reduce moisture resistance are reduced, improving the moisture resistance of the multilayer ceramic capacitor 2 and improving its reliability. Since the insulating layers 16a to 16d can be formed by a rolling transfer method, the thickness of the insulating layers 16a to 16d tends to be substantially uniform along the circumferential direction.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2Aa or FIG. 2ab, the thickness tp of the insulating layer 16b at the corner 17 of the laminate 4 can be made substantially the same as the thickness tz or tx of the insulating layers 16a, 16b at at least one of the two side surfaces 5a, 5b of the laminate 4 that sandwich the corner 17. In particular, by making the thickness tp of the insulating layer 16p at the corner 17 of the element 3 the same as the thickness tz or tx of the other parts, the moisture resistance of the laminated ceramic capacitor 2 is improved and the reliability is also improved. Since the insulating layer 16p can be formed by the rolling transfer method, the thickness tp of the insulating layer 16p at the corner 17 of the element 3 is likely to be substantially uniform compared to the thickness tz or tx of the other parts.

In this embodiment, the insulating layers 16a to 16d completely cover the outer periphery of the laminate 4, so that the ends of the interfaces between the insulating layers 16a to 16d and the laminate 4 can be completely covered from the outside air, further improving durability and moisture resistance.

Furthermore, as shown in Figures 1 and 2B, in this embodiment, terminal electrodes 6, 8 are formed on end faces 5e, 5f of the laminate 4, and the edges of the terminal electrodes 6, 8 cover parts of the insulating layers 16a-16d located on the outer faces 5a-5d of the laminate 4. Therefore, at the end faces 5e, 5f of the laminate 4, the terminal electrodes 6, 8 can cover the ends of the interfaces between the insulating layers 16a-16d and the laminate 4, further improving durability and moisture resistance.

In this embodiment, an insulating layer is formed on the laminate 4 by baking a glass sheet wrapped around the laminate 4 after firing. By forming an insulating layer in this manner, it is possible to improve the moisture resistance of the electronic components and improve their durability against external environmental changes such as thermal shock and physical shock.

The insulating layers 16a to 16d are formed from a single winding glass sheet 24, each of which is continuous, and the interface between the insulating layers 16a to 16d and the laminate 4 is not exposed to the outside. This makes it difficult for moisture to penetrate the interface, effectively preventing the occurrence of cracks originating from the interface.

In addition, in this embodiment, in the cross section shown in FIG. 2A, the variation in the arrangement of the X-axis direction ends of the internal electrode layers 10 of the laminate 4 can be kept within, for example, 5 μm.

The method for manufacturing a multilayer ceramic capacitor according to the second embodiment differs from that of the first embodiment only in the method for forming an insulating layer on the outer periphery of the laminate 4. Therefore, a description of the common parts will be omitted and the following description will focus mainly on the different parts. The parts that are not described below are the same as those described in the first embodiment.

As shown in Figures 7A to 7F, the method for manufacturing a multilayer ceramic capacitor according to this embodiment differs from the method for manufacturing a multilayer ceramic capacitor according to the first embodiment in the process of forming insulating layers 16a to 16d on the outer periphery of the side surfaces 5a to 5d of the laminate 4.

As shown in FIG. 7A, a winding glass sheet 24 is laid on the upper surface of the first rolling member 20, and an adhesive sheet 26 is attached to the upper surface of the winding glass sheet 24. In this embodiment, unlike the first embodiment, no adhesive layer is formed on the second rolling member 22, but the second rolling member 22 itself may have adhesive properties.

The adhesive second rolling member 22 is not particularly limited, and may be, for example, a sheet in which the surface of the sheet material itself is adhesive, such as a foam sheet, a rubber sheet such as silicone, an acrylic tape, or a UV tape (a tape whose adhesive strength weakens when exposed to UV rays). Examples of resins that make up the foam sheet include urethane, acrylic, silicone, polyester, and polyurethane.

As shown in FIG. 7B, the second rolling member 22 is lowered, and the laminate 4 is pressed against the first rolling member 20 by the second rolling member 22. The side surface 5a of the laminate 4 is attached to the adhesive sheet 26, and an outer peripheral film 24a that becomes the adhesive layer 26a and the insulating layer 16a is formed. The wrapping glass sheet 24 may also have a cut 25 formed therein, and the position of the cut 25 coincides with the edge position of the side surface 5d of the laminate 4.

As shown in FIG. 7C, when the second rolling member 22 is moved in the direction of the arrow while pressing the laminate 4 against the first rolling member 20 with the second rolling member 22, as in the first embodiment, the laminate 4 rolls and the outer peripheral film 24a is cut off from the winding glass sheet 24 at the notch 25.

When the second rolling member 22 is further moved in the same direction as above, the laminate 4 rolls, as shown in FIG. 7D, and the adhesive sheet 26 is attached to the side surface 5b of the laminate together with the sheet 24, forming the adhesive layer 26b and the outer peripheral film 24b that becomes the insulating layer 16b.

When the second rolling member 22 is further moved in the same direction as above, the laminate 4 rolls, as shown in FIG. 7E, and the adhesive sheet 26 is attached to the side surface 5c of the laminate together with the sheet 24, forming the adhesive layer 26c and the outer peripheral film 24c that becomes the insulating layer 16c.

By further rolling the laminate 4, as shown in FIG. 7F, the laminate 4 rolls, the adhesive sheet 26 adheres to the side surface 5d of the laminate, and an outer peripheral film 24d that becomes the adhesive layer 26d and the insulating layer 16d is formed.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 7F, by pressing the laminate 4 against the first rolling member 20 from the top of the second rolling member 22 to which the laminate 4 is attached, the outer peripheral film 24d can be separated from the winding glass sheet 24. In this way, the end of the outer peripheral film 24a and the outer peripheral film 24d are bonded, and the outer peripheral films 24a to 24d shown in FIG. 6H are wound around the laminate 4 to obtain it. The outer peripheral films 24a to 24d shown in FIG. 6H become the insulating layers 16a to 16d shown in FIG. 2A after the baking process.

The method of manufacturing a multilayer ceramic capacitor according to the third embodiment differs from the first and second embodiments only in the method of forming an insulating layer on the outer periphery of the laminate 4, and therefore a description of the common parts will be omitted and the following description will focus mainly on the different parts. The parts that are not described below are the same as those described in the above embodiments.

As shown in Figures 8A to 8F, the method for manufacturing a multilayer ceramic capacitor according to this embodiment differs from the method for manufacturing a multilayer ceramic capacitor according to the first embodiment in the configuration of the glass sheet in the process of forming an insulating layer on the outer periphery of the laminate 4.

As shown in FIG. 8A, an adhesive glass sheet 28 for wrapping is laid on the upper surface of the first rolling member 20. The adhesive glass sheet 28 for wrapping can be manufactured in the same manner as the glass sheet 24 of the first embodiment, and the glass sheet 28 can be made adhesive by adjusting the content or composition of, for example, the binder and/or dispersion medium and other tackifying components.

As the binder, for example, ethyl cellulose, polyvinyl butyral, etc. can be used, and it is preferable to make the content of the binder higher than that of the first embodiment. In addition, examples of the dispersion medium include terpineol, acetone, etc., and other tackifying components include synthetic polymers such as polyvinyl butyral, acrylic, polyvinyl alcohol, polyvinyl acetate, and epoxy, natural polymers such as rosin and terpene, and plasticizers such as dioctyl phthalic acid, and it is preferable to make the content of the binder higher than that of the first embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 8B, the second rolling member 22 is lowered, and the laminate 4 is pressed against the first rolling member 20 by the second rolling member 22. The side surface 5a of the laminate 4 is attached to the adhesive glass sheet 28 for wrapping, and an outer peripheral film 28a that becomes the insulating layer 16a is formed. The adhesive glass sheet 28 for wrapping may also have a cut 29 formed therein.

As shown in FIG. 8C, when the second rolling member 22 is moved in the direction of the arrow while pressing the laminate 4 against the first rolling member 20 with the second rolling member 22, as in the previously described embodiment, the laminate 4 rolls, and the outer peripheral film 28a adheres to the laminate 4 and is pulled away from the surface of the first rolling member 20.

When the second rolling member 22 is further moved in the same direction as above, the laminate 4 rolls as shown in FIG. 8D, and the adhesive glass sheet 28 for wrapping adheres to the side surface 5b of the laminate, forming the outer peripheral film 28b that will become the insulating layer 16b. When the second rolling member 22 is further moved in the direction of the arrow, the laminate 4 rolls as shown in FIG. 8E, and the adhesive glass sheet 28 for wrapping adheres to the side surface 5c of the laminate, forming the outer peripheral film 28c that will become the outer peripheral layer 16c. By further rolling the laminate 4, the laminate 4 rolls as shown in FIG. 8F, and the adhesive glass sheet 28 for wrapping adheres to the side surface 5d of the laminate, forming the outer peripheral film 28d that will become the outer peripheral layer 16d.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 8F, by pressing the laminate 4 against the first rolling member 20 from the top of the second rolling member 22 to which the laminate 4 is attached, the outer peripheral film 28d can be separated from the adhesive glass sheet 28 for wrapping. In this way, the end of the outer peripheral film 28a and the outer peripheral film 28d are bonded, and as shown in FIG. 8G, the outer peripheral films 28a to 28d are wrapped around the laminate 4 to obtain it. The outer peripheral films 28a to 28d shown in FIG. 8G become the insulating layers 16a to 16d shown in FIG. 2A after baking processing.

In this embodiment, the side surfaces 5a-5d and/or end surfaces 5e, 5f of the laminate 4 may be cleaned before the outer peripheral films 28a-28d are wrapped around the laminate 4 to form the laminate 4.

When performing a cleaning process, it is preferable that the surfaces of the first rolling member 20 and the second rolling member 22 have adhesive properties. The first rolling member 20 and the second rolling member 22 that have adhesive properties may be made of the same material or different materials.

The first rolling member 20 and the second rolling member 22 are not particularly limited, and may be, for example, a sheet in which the surface of the sheet material itself is adhesive, such as a foam sheet, a rubber sheet such as silicone, an acrylic tape, or a UV tape (a tape whose adhesive strength weakens when exposed to UV rays). Examples of resins that make up the foam sheet include urethane, acrylic, silicone, polyester, and polyurethane.

First, as shown in FIG. 9A, the second rolling member 22 is lowered and the laminate 4 is pressed against the portion of the first rolling member 20 where the adhesive glass sheet 28 for wrapping is not laid by the second rolling member 22. Next, as shown in FIG. 9B, when the second rolling member 22 is moved in the direction of the arrow in the same manner as in the above-mentioned embodiment, the laminate 4 rolls, and the side 5a of the laminate 4 attached to the adhesive first rolling member 20 and the side 5c of the laminate 4 attached to the second rolling member 22 are peeled off from the upper surface of the first rolling member 20 and the lower surface of the second rolling member 22. At that time, dirt and the like are transferred from the surfaces of the side 5a and side 5c of the laminate 4 to the contact surface of the first rolling member 20 or the second rolling member 22, and the sides 5a and 5c can be cleaned.

When the second rolling member 22 is further moved in the direction of the arrow, the laminate 4 rolls, and the side surface 5b of the laminate 4 adheres to the first rolling member 20, and the side surface 5d of the laminate 4 adheres to the second rolling member 22. At this time, the position of the side surface 5c of the laminate 4 coincides with the position of the end of the adhesive glass sheet 28 for wrapping.

When the second rolling member 22 is further moved in the direction of the arrow, the stack 4 rolls, and the side surface 5b of the stack 4 that was attached to the first rolling member 20 and the side surface 5d of the stack 4 that was attached to the second rolling member 22 are peeled off from the upper surface of the first rolling member 20 and the lower surface of the second rolling member 22. At that time, dirt and the like are transferred from the surfaces of the side surfaces 5b and 5d of the stack 4 to the contact surface of the first rolling member 20 or the second rolling member 22, and the sides 5b and 5d can be cleaned.

In other words, in the process in which the side surfaces 5a to 5d of the laminate 4 are peeled off from the upper surface of the first rolling member 20 and the lower surface of the second rolling member 22, cutting waste and debris (for example, setter shavings that adhere during firing) that were attached to the side surfaces 5a to 5d of the laminate 4 can be removed by adhering them to the upper surface of the first rolling member 20 and the lower surface of the second rolling member 22.

In Figure 9B, when the second rolling member 22 is further moved in the same direction as above, the laminate 4 rolls, and the side surface 5c of the laminate 4 adheres to the adhesive glass sheet 28 for wrapping, forming an insulating layer 16c. In this state, the laminate 4 in Figure 8B is upside down, and by moving the second rolling member 22 in this state in the direction of the arrow, the process of forming insulating layers 16a to 16d on the outer periphery of the sides 5a to 5d of the laminate 4 can be carried out following the cleaning process of the laminate 4.

In addition, by moving the second rolling member 22 in the Y-axis direction from the state shown in FIG. 9A, the stack 4 can be rotated two times to clean the end faces 5e and 5f of the stack 4.

In this embodiment, both the first rolling member 20 and the second rolling member 22 are adhesive, but the first rolling member 20 does not have to be adhesive. In that case, all the side surfaces 5a to 5d of the laminate 4 can be cleaned by moving the position where the laminate 4 is pressed against the first rolling member 20 away from the end of the adhesive glass sheet 28 for wrapping and increasing the number of times of rolling. In addition, by changing the direction of rolling, the end surfaces 5e and 5f of the laminate 4 can also be cleaned. Furthermore, the rolling member for cleaning may be a member different from the rolling member for rolling transfer.

3A, the method for manufacturing a multilayer ceramic capacitor according to this embodiment differs from the first to third embodiments only in the configuration of the exterior region 11 of the laminate 4, and a description of the common parts will be omitted and the following description will focus mainly on the different parts. The parts that are not described below are the same as those described in the above embodiments.

In this embodiment, the exterior region 11 is made extremely thinner than the thickness of the exterior region 11 shown in FIG. 2A by providing one or more outer dielectric layers made of the same dielectric as the inner dielectric layer 10. Also, in this embodiment, it is not necessary to form the exterior region 11 shown in FIG. 3A at all.

That is, in the element body 4, the exterior region 11 in the stacking direction of each layer (Z-axis direction) forms the side surface, and insulating layers 16a, 16d are formed on the side surfaces 5a, 5d of the exterior region 11. In this embodiment, the thickness of the exterior region 11 is approximately the same as the thickness of the ceramic layer 10 that forms the interior region 13. The melting points of the insulating layers 16a to 16p are lower than the melting point of the exterior region 11.

In this embodiment, even if the exterior region 11 is as thick as the inner dielectric layer 10, or even if there is no exterior region 11, the insulating layers 16a to 16d cover the side surfaces 5a to 5d of the laminate 4, providing sufficient protection and strength, improving the durability and moisture resistance of the laminated ceramic capacitor 2, and making it possible to improve reliability over long periods of use.

Fifth embodiment The method of manufacturing a multilayer ceramic capacitor according to this embodiment differs from the first to fourth embodiments only in the configurations of the inner dielectric layers 10 and the ends of the internal electrode layers 12, as shown in Fig. 3B, and a description of the common parts will be omitted, and the following description will focus mainly on the different parts. The parts that are not described below are the same as those described in the above-mentioned embodiments.

In this embodiment, dielectric gaps 18b, 18d are formed at both ends in the X-axis direction of the inner dielectric layer 10 and the internal electrode layer 12. That is, the outer sides of the dielectric gaps 18b, 18d in the X-axis direction form the side surfaces 5b, 5d of the laminate 4. In this way, by forming the dielectric gaps 18b, 18d, the ends of the internal electrode layers are covered with the dielectric gaps 18b, 18d, which improves the durability and moisture resistance of the multilayer ceramic capacitor 2 and makes it possible to improve reliability in long-term use.

The laminate 4 of this embodiment is obtained by firing the green chip 4a shown in FIG. 5B and going through the process of forming the insulating layers 16a to 16d described above. The green chip 4a shown in FIG. 5B is obtained by changing the pattern shape of the internal electrode pattern layer 12a in the manufacturing process of the laminate described above, so that the internal electrode pattern layer 12a is interrupted at the cross section C1 shown in FIG. 4A.

In addition, in FIG. 3C, an insulating layer is formed on the outer periphery of the laminate 4, in which the thickness of the exterior region 11 (including the dielectric gaps 18b and 18d) in FIG. 3B is approximately the same as the thickness of the dielectric layer 10 that forms the interior region. Even with this structure, it is the same as this embodiment.

10A to 10G, the method for manufacturing a multilayer ceramic capacitor according to this embodiment differs from the method for manufacturing a multilayer ceramic capacitor according to the previous embodiment only in the configuration of the adhesive sheet 26 in the step of forming an insulating layer on the outer periphery of the laminate 4. Explanation of the common parts will be omitted, and the following will mainly describe the different parts in detail. The parts that are not explained below are the same as those explained in the previous embodiment.

In this embodiment, the adhesive sheet 26 is intermittently attached to the winding glass sheet 24 in a predetermined pattern in accordance with the size of the side of the element body. That is, the adhesive sheet 26 is attached to the positions of the side (outer surface) of the laminate 4 that correspond to the portion where the insulating layer is to be formed, and the adhesive sheet 26 is not attached to other portions. In this embodiment, a case where insulating layers 16b and 16d are formed on the side surfaces 5b and 5d shown in FIG. 2A will be described.

As shown in FIG. 10A, a winding glass sheet 24 is laid on the upper surface of the first rolling member 20, and an adhesive sheet 26 is attached in a certain pattern to the upper surface of the winding glass sheet 24. In this embodiment, the second rolling member 22 has adhesive properties.

As shown in FIG. 10B, the second rolling member 22 is lowered, and the second rolling member 22 presses the laminate 4 against the first rolling member 20. There is no adhesive sheet 26 at the position corresponding to the outer surface 5a of the laminate 4, and therefore no adhesive layer is formed.

As shown in FIG. 10C, when the second rolling member 22 presses the stack 4 against the first rolling member 20 and moves the second rolling member 22 relative to the first rolling member 20 in the direction of the arrow, the stack 4 rolls.

When the second rolling member 22 is further moved in the direction of the arrow, the laminate 4 rolls as shown in FIG. 10D, and the adhesive sheet 26 adheres to the outer surface 5b of the laminate, forming an adhesive layer 26b and an outer film 24b that becomes an insulating layer 16b. Note that a cut 25 is formed in the wrapping glass sheet 24, and the position of the cut 25 coincides with the position of the side surface 5a of the laminate 4.

When the second rolling member 22 is further moved in the direction of the arrow, the laminate 4 rolls, as shown in FIG. 10E, and the outer peripheral film 24b is cut off from the winding dielectric sheet 24 at the notch 25. Furthermore, there is no adhesive sheet 26 at the position corresponding to the outer surface 5c of the laminate 4, and therefore no adhesive layer is formed.

By further rolling the laminate 4, as shown in FIG. 10F, the laminate 4 rolls, the adhesive sheet 26 adheres to the outer surface 5d of the laminate, and an outer film 24d that becomes the adhesive layer 26d and the insulating layer 16d is formed.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 10F, the laminate 4 is pressed against the first rolling member 20 from the top of the second rolling member 22 to which the laminate 4 is attached, thereby separating the outer peripheral film 24d from the winding glass sheet 24. In this way, a laminate 4 is obtained in which the outer peripheral films 24b, 24d are formed on the outer surfaces 5b, 5d as shown in FIG. 10G.

By baking the outer peripheral films 24b and 24d thus obtained onto the laminate 4, an insulating layer is formed on the outer surfaces 5b and 5d of FIG. 2A, but the laminate 4 can be obtained in which no insulating layer is formed on the outer surfaces 5a and 5c. In addition, by changing the pattern of the adhesive sheet 26 (the pattern of the cuts 25 can also be changed as necessary), an insulating layer can be formed at any position on the laminate 4. For example, the outer peripheral films 24b and 24d may be patterned to cover the corners 17 of the laminate 4. Furthermore, the adhesive sheet 26 is not necessarily required, and the glass sheet 24 itself may be adhesive and formed on the first rolling member in a predetermined pattern.

Seventh embodiment The method for manufacturing a multilayer ceramic capacitor according to this embodiment differs from the first to sixth embodiments only in the method for forming an insulating layer on the outer periphery of the laminate 4, and so a description of the common parts will be omitted and the following description will focus mainly on the different parts. The parts that will not be described below are the same as those described in the first to sixth embodiments.

This embodiment is similar to the previously described embodiment, except that a dielectric sheet is used instead of the glass sheet 24 so that the main component of the insulating layers 16a to 16d is a dielectric rather than glass.

The insulating layers 16a to 16d (including 16p/hereinafter the same) of this embodiment are made of a dielectric material having substantially the same or different composition as the dielectric layers 10, 11 of the element body 4. Substantially the same composition as the dielectric layers 10, 11 of the element body 4 means, for example, that the main dielectric component of the dielectric layers 10, 11 of the element body 4 is the same as the main dielectric component of the insulating layers 16a to 16d. For example, the main dielectric component of the insulating layers 16a to 16d may be a dielectric material with a perovskite structure such as _ABO3 , an alkali niobate ceramic, or the like.

Preferably, the insulating layers 16a to 16d are composed of a composition that contains a higher amount of components that improve sinterability than the dielectric layers 10 and 11 of the element body 4.

The composition of the dielectric layers 10, 11 is determined from the viewpoint of improving the characteristics required for electronic components, such as the dielectric constant, while allowing simultaneous firing with the internal electrode layer 12. The composition of the insulating layers 16a-16d is determined so that, for example, simultaneous firing with the internal electrode layer 12 is possible, but does not cause a compositional deviation in the dielectric layers 10, 11, and has a composition that is superior in sinterability to the dielectric layers 10, 11. From this viewpoint, examples of preferred components that are contained in greater amounts in the insulating layers 16a-16d than in the dielectric layers 10, 11 include boron, lithium, silicon (Si), manganese, and magnesium.

For example, by containing a component such as boron in the insulating layers 16a-16d at a content of about 0.1-5.0 mol % higher than that in the dielectric layers 10, 11, the insulating layers 16a-16d are sintered at a lower temperature than the dielectric layers 10, 11, and the sintered density is improved, which enhances the effect of preventing moisture penetration.

In addition, in this embodiment, the main component of the insulating layers 16a to 16d is a dielectric, which improves the adhesion between the insulating layers and the laminate during sintering, and greatly suppresses peeling of the insulating layers.

The dielectric sheet that can be used in place of the glass sheet 24 is not particularly limited as long as it is a sheet that becomes the insulating layers 16a to 16d shown in FIG. 2A after heat treatment, and examples include a dielectric sheet made of a material with substantially the same main component as the dielectric green sheet for forming the dielectric layers 10 or 11 shown in FIG. 1 or a different material, or other semi-cured dielectric sheets.

For example, the dielectric sheet 24 is preferably substantially the same as the dielectric green sheet 10a shown in FIG. 4A or FIG. 4B in terms of the dielectric raw material as described above, but may be different. Also, with regard to the sub-components of the dielectric raw material, it is preferable that the content of components that improve sinterability, such as boron, is high.

In addition, the dielectric sheet 24 preferably contains about 1 to 10% more binder and plasticizer combined than the dielectric green sheet 10a shown in FIG. 4A or 4B. The dielectric sheet 24 is installed on the surface of the first rolling member 20 so as to be peelable but not to shift laterally.

In this embodiment, it is preferable to simultaneously sinter the laminate 4 and bake the outer peripheral films 24a to 24d, but it is also possible to sinter the laminate 4 and then bake the outer peripheral films 24a to 24d.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be modified in various ways within the scope of the present invention.

For example, in the multilayer ceramic capacitor 2 of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1, at least one of the outer dielectric layers 11, 11 may be omitted. Also, in the above-described embodiment, the main component of the insulating layers 16a to 16d may be composed of a material other than glass or a dielectric. For example, the insulating layers 16a to 16d may be composed of ceramic, aluminum, epoxy resin, polyimide resin, etc.

Furthermore, the method for manufacturing electronic components according to the present invention is not limited to the method for manufacturing multilayer ceramic capacitors, but can be applied to the manufacturing of other electronic components. Examples of other electronic components include all electronic components in which a functional part is formed on the side surface of the element body (external surface other than the outer surface on which the terminal electrodes are formed), such as bandpass filters, chip inductors, multilayer three-terminal filters, piezoelectric elements, chip thermistors, chip varistors, chip resistors, and other surface mount (SMD) chip-type electronic components.

Furthermore, the transfer film formed on the outer surface of the element body by the manufacturing method of electronic components according to the present invention can be a functional film other than the functional film that becomes an insulating layer when fired. For example, the functional film may be a conductive film that becomes a terminal electrode formed in a predetermined pattern, a film on which characters or a mark for identifying the direction of a chip is written, a color correction film for the appearance of a camera, a permeation prevention film for an internal electrode, a photocatalytic functional film such as _TiO2 , etc.

2... Multilayer ceramic capacitor 3... Element 4... Laminate (element body)
4a: Green chip 5a to 5d: Side surface (outer surface)
5e, 5f... End surface (outer surface)
6: First terminal electrode 6a: Electrode paste film 8: Second terminal electrode 10: Inner dielectric layer (ceramic layer)
10a: inner green sheet 11: outer casing region (ceramic layer)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11a... Outer green sheet 12... Internal electrode layer 12α, 12β... Lead-out portion 12a... Internal electrode pattern layer 13... Interior region 14... Capacitive region 15A, 15B... Lead-out regions 16a, 16b, 16c, 16d, 16p... Insulating layer 16a1, 16b1, 16c1, 16d1... Outer periphery 17... Corner portion 18b, 18d... Dielectric gap portion 20... First rolling member 22... Second rolling member 24... Glass sheet (transfer layer)
24a, 24b, 24c, 24d... Outer membrane 25... Incision 26... Adhesive sheet 26a, 26b, 26c, 26d... Adhesive membrane 28... Adhesive glass sheet (transfer layer)
28a, 28b, 28c, 28d... Outer membrane 29... Cut

Claims (23)

1. A method for manufacturing an electronic component having a device body with a plurality of exterior surfaces, comprising:
The method includes a step of rolling the outer surface of the element body so that the outer surface of the element body is successively brought into contact with the surface of a rolling member having a transfer layer removably attached to the surface, thereby continuously or intermittently attaching the transfer layer to the outer surface of the element body,
the transfer layer is intermittently and removably attached to the surface of the rolling member;
The transfer layer is intermittently transferred to a plurality of outer surfaces of the element body.
A method for manufacturing electronic components. the rolling members include a first rolling member having the transfer layer on a surface thereof and being removably attached thereto, and a second rolling member located on the opposite side of the element body to the first rolling member and having a surface which contacts the element body;
2. A method for manufacturing an electronic component according to claim 1, wherein the second rolling member is moved relative to the first rolling member so that the distance between them can be varied and the second rolling member is displaced approximately parallel to the first rolling member, thereby rolling the element body on the surface of the first rolling member while contacting the surfaces of both the first rolling member and the second rolling member. The method for manufacturing electronic components according to claim 2, wherein the surface of the second rolling member has a removable adhesive layer. The method for manufacturing electronic components according to claim 2, wherein the surface of the transfer layer has an adhesive layer that can adhere to the outer surface of the element body. The method for manufacturing an electronic component according to claim 2, wherein the transfer layer has an adhesive property that allows it to adhere to the outer surface of the element body. the element body is rolled on a surface of the rolling member before being fired;
6. The method for manufacturing an electronic component according to claim 1, wherein after the transfer layer is transferred to the outer surface of the element body, the element body is fired together with the transfer layer. The method for manufacturing electronic components according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the element body is rolled on the surface of the rolling member after being fired. The transfer layer attached to the surface of the rolling member has a notch formed therein,
The method for manufacturing an electronic component according to any one of 1 to 7 , wherein the transfer layer is transferred onto the outer surface of the element body starting from the incision. 9. The method for manufacturing an electronic component according to claim 1, wherein the base body to which the transfer layer has been transferred is pressed against the rolling member from above the transfer layer, thereby separating the transfer layer transferred to the base body from the transfer layer attached to the surface of the rolling member . 1. A method for manufacturing an electronic component having a device body with a plurality of exterior surfaces, comprising:
The method includes a step of rolling the outer surface of the element body so that the outer surface of the element body is successively brought into contact with the surface of a rolling member having a transfer layer removably attached to the surface, thereby continuously or intermittently attaching the transfer layer to the outer surface of the element body,
The method for manufacturing an electronic component further includes a step of cleaning the outer surface of the element body by contacting the outer surface of the element body with a cleaning surface formed on the surface of either the rolling member or another rolling member different from the rolling member when rolling the element body on the surface of the rolling member or the surface of another rolling member different from the rolling member. the transfer layer is intermittently and removably attached to the surface of the rolling member;
The method for manufacturing an electronic component according to claim 10 , wherein the transfer layer is intermittently transferred to a plurality of outer surfaces of the element body. The outer surface of the element body has a side surface that is continuous along a circumferential direction and an end surface that intersects with a plurality of the side surfaces,
The method for manufacturing an electronic component according to claim 10 , wherein the element body is rolled on the surface of the rolling member so that the transfer layer covers the entire outer surface of the element body that is continuous along the circumferential direction. The method for manufacturing electronic components according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the transfer layer is either a glass sheet or a dielectric sheet. The method for manufacturing electronic components according to any one of claims 1 to 13, wherein the composition of the transfer layer is substantially uniform along the surface direction. The method for manufacturing electronic components according to any one of claims 1 to 14, wherein the thickness of the transfer layer is substantially uniform along the surface direction. The method for manufacturing an electronic component according to any one of claims 7 to 15, wherein the transfer layer is a glass sheet, and the transfer layer is transferred to the element body after it has been fired. The method for manufacturing an electronic component according to any one of claims 1 to 16, wherein the element body has a laminated structure in which ceramic layers and internal electrode layers are laminated. The method for manufacturing an electronic component according to claim 17, wherein the element body has an exterior region in the stacking direction, and the transfer layer is formed on the outer surface of the exterior region. The method for manufacturing an electronic component according to claim 18, wherein the exterior region is formed to be thicker than the ceramic layer forming the interior region. The method for manufacturing an electronic component according to claim 18 or 19, wherein the thickness of the exterior region is approximately the same as the thickness of the ceramic layer forming the interior region. The method for manufacturing an electronic component according to any one of claims 18 to 20, wherein the exterior region is also formed in a direction perpendicular to the stacking direction of the element body. A functional film forming apparatus for electronic components for forming functional films on a plurality of outer surfaces of an element body for an electronic component, comprising:
A first rolling member having a transfer layer that becomes the functional film removably attached to a surface thereof;
a second rolling member located on the opposite side of the element body from the first rolling member and having a surface that contacts the element body;
a drive mechanism for moving the second rolling member relatively to the first rolling member so that the distance between the second rolling member and the first rolling member is variable and the second rolling member is displaced substantially parallel to the first rolling member in order to sandwich the element body between the first rolling member and the second rolling member and roll the element body on a surface of the first rolling member ;
The transfer layer is intermittently and removably attached to a surface of the first rolling member so that the transfer layer is intermittently transferred to a plurality of outer surfaces of the element body.
Functional film formation equipment for electronic components. A functional film forming apparatus for electronic components for forming functional films on a plurality of outer surfaces of an element body for an electronic component, comprising:
A first rolling member having a transfer layer that becomes the functional film removably attached to a surface thereof;
a second rolling member located on the opposite side of the element body from the first rolling member and having a surface that contacts the element body;
a drive mechanism for moving the second rolling member relatively to the first rolling member so that the distance between the second rolling member and the first rolling member is variable and the second rolling member is displaced substantially parallel to the first rolling member in order to sandwich the element body between the first rolling member and the second rolling member and roll the element body on a surface of the first rolling member ;
A cleaning surface is formed on the surface of the second rolling member to come into contact with the outer surface of the element body and clean the outer surface of the element body.
Functional film formation equipment for electronic components.

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