Patent ID: 7943060

Claim:
A process for making a thick film getter, comprising: (a) pre-hydrating a desiccant material selected from the group consisting of zeolites, alkaline earth metal oxides, sulfates, chlorides and bromides to reach its saturation level of moisture absorption by exposing said material in an ordinary paste production environment to reach pseudo steady state weight gain due to the moisture absorption or by exposing the material in a controlled temperature and humidity environment to reach pseudo steady state weight gain due to the moisture absorption; (b) dispersing glass frit and the pre-hydrated desiccant material in an organic medium comprised of organic polymeric binder and volatile organic solvent, thereby obtaining a screen-printable getter paste composition, comprising 50-80 weight % of inorganic solids and 20-50 weight % of the organic medium; (c) depositing a thick film of the screen-printable getter paste composition on a substrate; and (d) dehydrating the thick film on the substrate to thereby activate the desiccant.