Patent ID: 8105453

Claim:
A method for producing a multilayer ceramic substrate, comprising: a first step of forming a green ceramic laminate including a plurality of stacked green ceramic layers; a second step of firing the green ceramic laminate to sinter the green ceramic layers; and a third step of dividing the sintered ceramic laminate formed by firing the green ceramic laminate into a plurality of pieces; wherein the green ceramic laminate formed in the first step includes at least one green boundary-defining thick-film pattern arranged on a main surface of at least one of the green ceramic layers and along a portion corresponding to the boundary between the pieces of the sintered ceramic laminate divided in the third step; the at least one green boundary-defining thick-film pattern has firing shrinkage characteristics that are different from those of the green ceramic layers adjacent to the at least one green boundary-defining thick-film pattern; in the second step, at least one cavity is formed due to the differences in firing shrinkage characteristics between the at least one boundary-defining thick-film pattern and the ceramic layers in contact with the at least one boundary-defining thick-film pattern; the at least one cavity is formed along an edge of the at least one boundary-defining thick-film pattern when viewed in the stacking direction of the ceramic layers during sintering of the green ceramic laminate in the second step as a result of the different shrinkage characteristics between the at least one boundary-defining thick-film pattern and the ceramic layers; in the third step, the sintered ceramic laminate is divided along the cavity into the plurality of pieces; and the at least one green boundary-defining thick-film pattern is arranged only along the boundary between the pieces of the sintered ceramic laminate divided in the third step.