Project 9
Demonstrating a new ink material for aerosol printing conductive traces and custom strain gauges on flexible surfaces
(dr. dilan ratnayake, ECE)
Schematic of the Aerosol Jet process and photo of the deposition head.
170um wide silver lines printed at UofL
Aerosol Jet printing is a maskless additive manufacturing solution that reduces the overall size of electronic systems by using nanomaterials to produce fine features and embedded components. The resulting functional electronics can have line widths and pattern features from 10 microns to several millimeters. The system can directly deposit a wide range of electronic materials, including conductive and nonconductive surfaces. This technology provides a wide range of possible applications that include flexible electronics, embedded sensors and wireless communication.
The Aerosol Jet process uses aerodynamic focusing for the high-resolution deposition of colloidal suspensions and/or chemical precursor solutions. An aerosol stream of the deposition material is focused, deposited, and patterned onto a 2D or 3D substrate. The basic system consists of two key components, as shown in Figure 1a. Figure 1b shows 170um width printed silver lines using our Aerosol Jet printing system.
In this project, the REU student will develop a strategy and process for printing silver conductive traces onto 3D printed surfaces. He or she will learne how to operate the UofL Aerosol Jet Printing System and gain a fundamental understanding of its physics and mechanics. The main tasks for this project are:
1) Identify an appropriate coating material to disperse onto the 3D printed part to provide a level surface for aerosol jet printing.
2) Determine a process to dispense the leveling material using Argo or Pico Pulse jetting.
3) Determine how to cure the leveling material, preferably using Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) or thermal processing.
4) Print arrays of silver traces using the Aerosol Jet System and optimize the process.
5) Sinter the silver traces using IPL and thermal processing.
6) Characterize all samples and processes using SEM imaging, optical imaging, profilometry, and electrical testing.
7) Give weekly update presentations.
8) Present a final poster and written report.
