A thermal head according to the present disclosure includes: a substrate; a first electrode; a heat generating section; a second electrode; a resin layer; and a protective layer. The first electrode is located on the substrate. The heat generating section is located on the substrate. The second electrode is located on the substrate so as to be electrically connected to the heat generating section and the first electrode. The resin layer is located on the first electrode. The protective layer is located on the resin layer. Moreover, the resin layer includes a first portion inserted in the first electrode.

The present disclosure provides a thermal print head and a method of fabricating the thermal print head. The thermal print head includes a substrate made of a semiconductor material and having a main surface and a convex portion, a resistor layer including a plurality of heat generating portions on the convex portion, and a wiring layer conducted to the plurality of heat generating portions and formed to contact the resistor layer. The convex portion has a top surface, a first inclined surface and a second inclined surface. At least one of two ends of the convex portion in the main scanning direction forms a third inclined surface connected to the main surface and the first inclined surface, and a fourth inclined surface connected to the main surface and the second inclined surface.

A thermal head according to the present disclosure includes a substrate, a plurality of heat generating portions, a plurality of first electrodes, and a second electrode. The plurality of heat generating portions are located on the substrate. The plurality of first electrodes are located on the substrate and respectively connected to the plurality of heat generating portions. The second electrode is located on the substrate and is located across the plurality of first electrodes. The second electrode includes protruding portions protruding in a first direction from the second electrode toward corresponding ones of the first electrodes and being in contact with the corresponding ones of the first electrodes.

An asymmetric thermal print head includes a print head body and a plurality of print elements supported on the print head body. The print elements are aligned along a first axis. Each print element includes a heater portion having a burn width measured along the first axis corresponding to a first print resolution, and a burn length measured along a second axis, which is perpendicular to the first axis, corresponding to a second print resolution. The second print resolution is higher than the first print resolution. One or more control circuits are configured to individually activate the print elements.

According to one embodiment, a thermal print head includes a heat sink, a head substrate having a plurality of heat generating elements placed on the heat sink and disposed in a primary scanning direction, a circuit board placed on the heat sink so as to be adjacent to the head substrate in an auxiliary scanning direction and provided with a connection circuit, and a control element electrically connected to the heat generating element via a first bonding wire and electrically connected to the connection circuit via a second bonding wire, wherein a plurality of first bonding wires is disposed in parallel in the primary scanning direction, and among the first bonding wires, the first bonding wire having a length of at least 2 mm or more is a metal wire having a Young's modulus greater than that of gold.

According to one embodiment, a thermal print head includes a heat sink; a head substrate placed on the heat sink and having a plurality of heat generating elements arranged in a primary scanning direction; a circuit board placed on the heat sink so as to be adjacent to the head substrate in an auxiliary scanning direction and provided with a connection circuit; and a control element electrically connected to the heat generating element via a first bonding wire and electrically connected to the connection circuit via a second bonding wire, in which at least one of the first bonding wire and the second bonding wire includes any of a copper wire, a copper alloy wire, and a wire mainly made of copper and coated with a metal different from copper.

A thermal print head includes a head substrate (11) having a main surface (11a) on which a convex part (12) is formed, a resistor layer (21) that is formed on the main surface (11a) and the convex part (12), a wiring layer (22) that covers the resistor layer (21) such that the resistor layer (21) is exposed at a heat generating part (20) formed at a part of the convex part (12), and a protective layer (25) that is formed on the main surface (11a) of the head substrate (11) and covers the resistor layer (21) and the wiring layer (22). The resistor layer (21) has a main resistor layer that contains tantalum, and at least one of a first sub-resistor layer that contains tantalum nitride and is stacked below the tantalum layer and a second sub-resistor layer that contains tantalum nitride and is stacked on the tantalum layer. The nitrogen content of tantalum nitride contained in the first sub-resistor layer and the second sub-resistor layer exceeds a predetermined value such that the tantalum nitride is deposited in a stable structure.

A thermal head of the present disclosure includes a substrate; a heat generating section disposed on the substrate; an electrode which is disposed on the substrate and is connected to the heat generating section; a protective layer covering the heat generating section and the electrode, the protective layer having a surface provided with a depression portion; at least one particle of metal disposed inside the depression portion; and an oxide layer covering the at least one particle, the oxide layer being formed of oxides of the metal. A surface of the oxide layer is exposed to an outside and is located in a deeper position of the depression portion than the surface of the protective layer around the depression portion.

A thermal head includes: a substrate; a heat generating section which is disposed on the substrate; a plurality of driving ICs including first and second driving ICs which are disposed on the substrate and electrically coupled to the heat generating section; and a cover member covering the first and second driving ICs. The cover member is disposed in an inter-driving IC region between the first driving IC and the second driving IC and above and below the inter-driving IC region, and includes a first void.

A thermal print head includes a semiconductor substrate, a resistor layer with heat generating portions arranged in the main scanning direction, a wiring layer included in a conduction path for energizing the heat generating portions, and a protective layer covering the resistor layer and the wiring layer. The semiconductor substrate includes a projection protruding from the obverse surface of the substrate and elongated in the main scanning direction. The projection has first and second inclined side surfaces spaced apart from each other in the sub-scanning direction. The heat generating portions are arranged to overlap with the first inclined side surface of the projection as viewed in plan view.