Thermally printing head operable with electrically resistive layer

Abstract

A printing head for thermally printing on a recording medium by using an electrically resistive layer provided on a film or ribbon or on the medium. The head includes a thermal head having a substrate, and a plurality of recording electrodes disposed on the substrate. Each electrode has an electrical contact portion for electrically contacting the resistive layer of the film, ribbon or medium. The contact portions of the two electrodes cooperate to energize the resistive layer, so that the energized portion of the resistive layer generates Joule heat which either transfers ink material of an ink layer onto the ordinary recording medium, or which produces color on the surface of the thermosensible recording medium. The substrate of the head is made of a material having a low wear resistance, and the electrical contact portion of each electrode has a thickness of at least one micron and is made of an electrically conductive material for resisting oxidation deterioration thereof. The conductive material is selected from the group consisting of: a metal silicide; at least one metal selected from the group consisting of chromium, titanium, tantalum, zirconium, hafnium and niobium; at least one alloy or metal compound which contains at least one of the metals indicated above.