Additively manufactured electronics (AMEs), also known as printed electronics, are becoming increasingly important for the anticipated Internet of Things (IoT). Current techniques rely on ink-based printing technologies such as inkjet and aerosol jet printers, which highly suffer from contamination, expensive formulation procedures, and limited materials sources, making it challenging to print pure and multimaterial devices. Here, a multimaterial additive nanomanufacturing (M-ANM) technique utilizing directed laser deposition at the nano and microscale is demonstrated, allowing the printing of lateral and vertical hybrid structures and devices. This M-ANM technique involves pulsed laser ablation of solid targets placed on a target carousel inside the printer head for in-situ generation of contamination-free nanoparticles, which are then directed toward the nozzle and laser-sintered in real-time to form desired patterns and structures layer-by-layer. Different materials, such as Ag, Cu, ZnO, TiO2, BTO, Al2O3, etc, are printed in a single-step process. The quality and versatility of our M-ANM technique offer a potential manufacturing option for emerging IoT.
Currently, printed electronics are manufactured by wet printing technologies such as inkjet and aerosol jet printers, which suffer from major drawbacks, including complex and expensive ink formulations, surfactants/contaminants, limited sources of inks, and the need for high-temperature post-processing. This talk will present a novel additive nanomanufacturing and dry printing technology for multimaterial printing of electronics, sensors, and energy devices. This technology allows in-situ and on-demand generation of various pure nanoparticles (metals, semiconductors, insulators, etc) in the printer head that are then directed toward the printer nozzle and laser-sintered in real-time to form desired patterns and structures layer-by-layer.
The use of printed electronics is rising fast as we move toward the internet of things (IoT). Today, most printed electronics are printed on nonbiodegradable polymers resulting in an exponential increase in E-waste formation. The current printing technologies are liquid/ink-based which are not compatible with biodegradable substrates such as papers. Here, we introduce a novel dry printing method to print conductive silver patterns on biodegradable papers. The effect of different printing parameters on the paper burning threshold is investigated, and the electrical characteristics of the lines are characterized for different line thicknesses and widths. Furthermore, the mechanical properties of the lines are studied by bending, twisting, and adhesion tests. This dry printing technology can pave the way toward eco-friendly and biodegradable papertronics.
A novel additive nanomanufacturing (ANM) technique capable of dry-printing functional materials and devices with high electrical and mechanical performances is presented in this talk. The mechanical behavior of the ANM-printed silver lines on polyimide substrates under bending and cycling tests up to 1 million cycles at different bending radii is studied. The results show that ANM-printed silver lines have nearly no change in resistivity even after 1 million bending cycles. These tests validated its good electrical conductivity and functionality of the printed devices under different strain which makes the ANM as a potential technique for printing flexible electronics and devices.
Printing pure and multimaterial structures and devices in a single process is still in its infancy. Current electronic printing are ink-based technologies that suffer from ink contaminations, complex ink formulation, and limited sources of printing ink making it difficult to print pure and multimaterial structures and devices. Here, for the first time, we report a novel dry multimaterial 3D printing technology which allows printing multiple materials such as barium titanate (BTO), titanium dioxide (TiO2), tin oxide (SnO), zinc oxide (ZnO), aluminum oxide (Al2O3) and silver (Ag) on flexible substrates in a single step process. Flexible ZnO-based photodetectors and flexible electronics are printed and tested to demonstrate the huge impact of this technology on the future of printed electronics, sensors, and energy devices.
Here we have developed a new additive nanomanufacturing (ANM) technique for printing multimaterial structures and patterns on flexible substrates. The ink formulations in the current printed electronics techniques such as inkjet printing and aerosol jet printing is a complex and impure process that limits their applications in printing multifunctional functional devices systems. Also, the required post-treatment processes after every printing make these techniques inefficient and costly. Our ANM technique addressed these challenges by producing various dry and solution-free nanoparticles, which will serve as the building block for printing different multifunctional materials and structures. The printed patterns demonstrate high electrical conductivity and good mechanical reliability, which highlights the promise of this ANM technique dry printing multilateral and flexible hybrid electronics.
The scalable and patterned growth of two-dimensional (2D) quantum materials is essential for wafer-scale device integration in order to transition their exciting properties and performance from lab to fab. However, the current gas-phase synthesis methods are incompatible with conventional patterning technologies (e.g., lithography) or require extensive top-down processing steps (e.g., etching) to create the desired device structures on the substrates. In this talk, I will describe some of the laser-based approaches we are undertaking to control the synthesis and integration of various 2D materials. I will particularly highlight our recently developed condensed phase growth approach compatible with direct laser writing as well as the conventional lithography and device integration technologies.
The vapor or gas-phase synthesis methods (e.g., CVD) are widely adopted to grow mono and few-layer two-dimensional (2D) materials. However, uncontrolled gas-phase reactions, complex flow dynamics, and limited reproducibility have made the gas phase growth of monolayer TMDCs crystals extremely challenging. Here we introduce a novel laser-assisted synthesis method for the rapid growth of various 2D materials. To produce the atomically-thin crystals, instead of using conventional multi-component precursors, this synthesis method utilizes stoichiometric powders as precursors that are laser vaporized to create the right vapor flux for the controlled growth of mono and few-layer crystals. We demonstrate a successful synthesis of four semiconducting TMDC monolayers such as MoS2, MoSe2, WSe2, and WS2 crystals. This laser vaporization process promises an efficient general synthesis solution for the accelerated growth of a variety of high-quality 2D quantum materials.
Additive manufacturing (AM) and printing concepts have been employed in various fields, including electronics and functional device manufacturing industries. However, to date, the ability to print multifunctional materials and devices have been limited with the current printing technologies. Here we present a new printing concept for additive nanomanufacturing (ANM) of multifunctional material and structures on various substrates. In this method, we show that a stream of pure nanoparticles can be laser-generated in real-time at room temperature and at atmospheric pressure. These nanoparticles are then directed toward a printer nozzle and laser-sintered in-situ to form crystals with desired patterns and structures. Currently, with our ANM systems, we have achieved printing various materials (TiO2, BTO, ITO) on different substrates, including SiO2, PDMS, and paper. We believe this new ANM concept would bring excitement into the field of printing functional structures devices.
Two-dimensional (2D) materials have been viewed as a promising candidate for future electronic, optoelectronic, and photonic applications. This, however, demands controlled synthesis and precise integration of such materials with complex patterns onto rigid and flexible substrates. Here we introduce a new laser-based approach that enables the integration of 2D materials onto the flexible and rigid substrate with desired shapes and patterns. We report direct laser crystallization and the pattering of MoS2 and WSe2 on PDMS and quartz substrates. A thin layer of solid-state stoichiometric amorphous 2D film is deposited onto the substrates, followed by a controlled crystallization and direct writing process using a tunable nanosecond laser (1064 nm). This novel method enables the use of emerging 2D materials in future electronics, optoelectronics, and photonics applications where intricate patterning and/or flexible substrates are required.
Further geometrical confinement of the Two-dimensional (2D) materials in lateral dimensions toward zero-dimensional (0D) structures can form 2D nanoparticles and quantum dots with new properties. Here, we report the formation of quantum dots-like gallium selenide (GaSe) nanoparticles ensembles in a nonequilibrium gas-phase synthesis method. We show that by condensing the laser-generated plume in an argon background gas, metastable nanoparticles can form in the gas phase via the plume condensation process. The deposition of nanoparticles onto the substrates results in the formation of nanoparticle ensembles, which are then post-processed to crystallize or sinter the nanoparticles. The effects of background gas pressures and crystallization/sintering temperatures on the properties of the generated nanoparticles are systematically studied. This method offers a clean and fast route toward the formation of various 2D nanoparticles for potential optoelectronic and photonic applications.
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