Inkjet printing for flexible electronics: Materials, processes and equipments

Inkjet printing, known as digital writing technique, can directly deposit functional materials to form pattern onto substrate. This paper provides an overview of inkjet printing technologies for flexible electronics. Firstly, we highlight materials challenges in implementing flexible devices into practical application, especially for inkjet printing process. Then the micro/nano-patterning technologies of inkjet printing are discussed, including conventional inkjet printing techniques and electrohydrodynamic printing techniques. Thirdly, the related equipments on inkjet printing are shown. Finally, challenges for its future development are also discussed. The main purpose of the work is to condense the basic knowledge and highlight the challenges associated with the burgeoning and exciting field of inkjet printing for flexible electronics.

[1]  Wallace W. Carr,et al.  Visualization of drop-on-demand inkjet: Drop formation and deposition , 2006 .

[2]  Richard H. Friend,et al.  High-Resolution Ink-Jet Printing of All-Polymer Transistor Circuits , 2001 .

[3]  Jeffrey Bokor,et al.  Ultra-high-resolution monolithic thermal bubble inkjet print head , 2007 .

[4]  M. Cich,et al.  Deposition of (Zn, Mn)2SiO4 for plasma display panels using charged liquid cluster beam , 1998 .

[5]  P. Madden,et al.  Development and modeling of conducting polymer actuators and the fabrication of a conducting polymer based feedback loop , 2003 .

[6]  Jang Sub Kim,et al.  Ink-jet printing of cu-ag-based highly conductive tracks on a transparent substrate. , 2009, Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids.

[7]  C. Piana,et al.  Thermal inkjet microdeposition of PEDOT:PSS on ITO-coated glass and characterization of the obtained film , 2004 .

[8]  I. Hutchings,et al.  Inkjet printing - the physics of manipulating liquid jets and drops , 2008 .

[9]  Fei Wei,et al.  Fabrication and characterization of multi-walled carbon nanotubes-based ink , 2005 .

[10]  Harri Kopola,et al.  Novel roll-to-roll lift-off patterned active-matrix display on flexible polymer substrate , 2009 .

[11]  Stergios Logothetidis,et al.  Flexible organic electronic devices: Materials, process and applications , 2008 .

[12]  Alan G. MacDiarmid,et al.  'Synthetic metals': a novel role for organic polymers , 1989, Images of the Twenty-First Century. Proceedings of the Annual International Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society,.

[13]  Wi Hyoung Lee,et al.  Control of the Morphology and Structural Development of Solution‐Processed Functionalized Acenes for High‐Performance Organic Transistors , 2009 .

[14]  Sigurd Wagner,et al.  Electronic skin: architecture and components , 2004 .

[15]  Daniel Sandholzer,et al.  Thin organic films by atmospheric-pressure ion deposition , 2004, Nature materials.

[16]  Jooho Moon,et al.  Highly Conductive Ink Jet Printed Films of Nanosilver Particles for Printable Electronics , 2005 .

[17]  A. Salleo,et al.  Flexible Electronics: Materials and Applications , 2009 .

[18]  Robert A. Street,et al.  Additive jet printing of polymer thin-film transistors , 2003 .

[19]  Elsa Reichmanis,et al.  Plastic electronic devices: From materials design to device applications , 2005, Bell Labs Technical Journal.

[20]  F. Krebs.  Fabrication and processing of polymer solar cells: A review of printing and coating techniques , 2009 .

[21]  Mincheol Chang,et al.  Chemical Sensors Based on Highly Conductive Poly(3,4‐ethylenedioxythiophene) Nanorods , 2005 .

[22]  Chang-Soo Han,et al.  The production of transparent carbon nanotube field emitters using inkjet printing , 2009 .

[23]  Oleg V. Salata,et al.  Tools of Nanotechnology: Electrospray , 2005 .

[24]  H. Kim,et al.  Effects of additives on properties of MgO thin films by electrostatic spray deposition , 2000 .

[25]  U. Schubert,et al.  Inkjet Printing of Polymers: State of the Art and Future Developments , 2004 .

[26]  G. Crawford.  Flexible Flat Panel Displays: Crawford/Flexible Flat Panel Displays , 2005 .

[27]  Qinghua Zhang,et al.  Electrospun carbon nanotube composite nanofibres with uniaxially aligned arrays , 2007 .

[28]  U. Schubert,et al.  Ink‐jet Printing and Microwave Sintering of Conductive Silver Tracks , 2006 .

[29]  J. Kulon,et al.  Multi-nozzle electrospray system for gas cleaning processes , 2006 .

[30]  Sigurd Wagner,et al.  Mechanisms of reversible stretchability of thin metal films on elastomeric substrates , 2006 .

[31]  Michael A. Haase,et al.  Recent Progress in Organic Electronics: Materials, Devices, and Processes , 2004 .

[32]  Rong-Tarng Wu,et al.  Preparation of highly concentrated and stable suspensions of silver nanoparticles by an organic base catalyzed reduction reaction , 2007, 2007 Digest of papers Microprocesses and Nanotechnology.

[33]  Jang Sub Kim,et al.  Direct writing of copper conductive patterns by ink-jet printing , 2007 .

[34]  L. Guo,et al.  High‐Speed Roll‐to‐Roll Nanoimprint Lithography on Flexible Plastic Substrates , 2008 .

[35]  Osman A. Basaran,et al.  Small‐scale free surface flows with breakup: Drop formation and emerging applications , 2002 .

[36]  Jeffrey Bokor,et al.  Maskless lithography using drop-on-demand inkjet printing method , 2004, SPIE Advanced Lithography.

[37]  Richard H. Friend,et al.  Lithography‐Free, Self‐Aligned Inkjet Printing with Sub‐Hundred‐Nanometer Resolution , 2005 .

[38]  Ioannis S. Chronakis,et al.  Conductive polypyrrole nanofibers via electrospinning: Electrical and morphological properties , 2006 .

[39]  Eyal Zussman,et al.  Upward needleless electrospinning of multiple nanofibers , 2004 .

[40]  Il Woong Kwon,et al.  Thermistor behavior of PEDOT: PSS thin film , 2009 .

[41]  A. Jaworek,et al.  Electrospray droplet sources for thin film deposition , 2007 .

[42]  Katharine Smith,et al.  Controlled electrospray pulsation for deposition of femtoliter fluid droplets onto surfaces , 2007 .

[43]  Ulrich S. Schubert,et al.  Inkjet Printing of Polymer Micro‐Arrays and Libraries: Instrumentation, Requirements, and Perspectives , 2003 .

[44]  Yang Yang,et al.  Vertically integrated electronic circuits via a combination of self-assembled polyelectrolytes, ink-jet printing, and electroless metal plating processes , 2002 .

[45]  J. L. Li,et al.  On the meniscus deformation when the pulsed voltage is applied , 2006 .

[46]  Cui Jianzhong,et al.  Fundamental differences between spray forming and other semisolid processes , 2001 .

[47]  Moe Key.  FLEXIBLE ELECTRONICS SYSTEM AND THEIR MECHANICAL PROPERTIES , 2008 .

[48]  Yang Wang,et al.  Control of the morphology of micro/nanostructures of polycarbonate via electrospinning , 2009 .

[49]  John A. Rogers,et al.  Stretchable Electronics: Materials Strategies and Devices , 2009 .

[50]  Robert A. Dorey,et al.  Preparation of lead zirconate titanate nano-powder by electrohydrodynamic atomization , 2005 .

[51]  Yong-Young Noh,et al.  Downscaling of self-aligned, all-printed polymer thin-film transistors. , 2007, Nature nanotechnology.

[52]  Jian Fang,et al.  Applications of electrospun nanofibers , 2008 .

[53]  Eyal Zussman,et al.  Carbon Nanotubes Embedded in Oriented Polymer Nanofibers by Electrospinning , 2003 .

[54]  J. Rogers,et al.  A Stretchable Form of Single-Crystal Silicon for High-Performance Electronics on Rubber Substrates , 2006, Science.

[55]  P. Calvert.  Inkjet Printing for Materials and Devices , 2001 .

[56]  Shlomo Magdassi,et al.  Silver Nanoparticles as Pigments for Water-Based Ink-Jet Inks , 2003 .

[57]  Brian Derby,et al.  A Low Curing Temperature Silver Ink for Use in Ink‐Jet Printing and Subsequent Production of Conductive Tracks , 2005 .

[58]  Yonggang Huang,et al.  Stretchable and Foldable Silicon Integrated Circuits , 2008, Science.

[59]  Z. Suo,et al.  Stretchable gold conductors on elastomeric substrates , 2003 .

[60]  Dae-Young Lee,et al.  Structuring of conductive silver line by electrohydrodynamic jet printing and its electrical characterization , 2008 .

[61]  M. Kotaki,et al.  A review on polymer nanofibers by electrospinning and their applications in nanocomposites , 2003 .

[62]  Jiusheng Cheng,et al.  Advances and applications of electrohydrodynamics , 2003 .

[63]  Lan Hongbo.  Review of Template Fabrication for Nanoimprint Lithography , 2009 .

[64]  Doyoung Byun,et al.  Drop-on-demand printing of conductive ink by electrostatic field induced inkjet head , 2008 .

[65]  Seeram Ramakrishna,et al.  Spray deposition of electrospun TiO2 nanorods for dye-sensitized solar cell , 2007 .

[66]  Fei Wei,et al.  Preparation of a carbon nanotube film by ink-jet printing , 2007 .

[67]  Z. Suo,et al.  Nonlinear analyses of wrinkles in a film bonded to a compliant substrate , 2005 .

[68]  John A. Rogers,et al.  Post-buckling analysis for the precisely controlled buckling of thin film encapsulated by elastomeric substrates , 2008 .

[69]  Takao Someya,et al.  Direct inkjet printing of silver electrodes on organic semiconductors for thin-film transistors with top contact geometry , 2008 .

[70]  Darrell H. Reneker,et al.  Electrospinning jets and polymer nanofibers , 2008 .

[71]  John A Rogers,et al.  High-resolution electrohydrodynamic jet printing. , 2007, Nature materials.

[72]  John A Rogers,et al.  Controlled buckling of semiconductor nanoribbons for stretchable electronics , 2006, Nature nanotechnology.

[73]  John A. Rogers,et al.  Theoretical and Experimental Studies of Bending of Inorganic Electronic Materials on Plastic Substrates , 2008 .

[74]  Sunho Jeong,et al.  Ink-Jet-Printed Organic−Inorganic Hybrid Dielectrics for Organic Thin-Film Transistors , 2008 .

[75]  Sang Soo Kim,et al.  Electrohydrodynamic drop-on-demand patterning in pulsed cone-jet mode at various frequencies , 2008 .

[76]  Lin Fang,et al.  Positive correlation between recombination rate and nucleotide diversity is shown under domestication selection in the chicken genome , 2008 .

[77]  Wallace W. Carr,et al.  An experimental study of drop-on-demand drop formation , 2006 .

[78]  Ghassan E. Jabbour,et al.  Desktop inkjet printer as a tool to print conducting polymers , 2006 .

[79]  Yutaka Yamagata,et al.  Thin‐Film Fabrication Method for Organic Light‐Emitting Diodes Using Electrospray Deposition , 2009, Advanced materials.

[80]  Satoshi Inoue,et al.  Polymer thin film transistors with self-aligned gates fabricated using ink-jet printing , 2007 .

[81]  Wenlian Li,et al.  Synthesis and electroluminescence properties of europium (III) complexes with new second ligands , 2005 .

[82]  Niyazi Serdar Sariciftci,et al.  PROGRESS IN PLASTIC ELECTRONICS DEVICES , 2006 .

[83]  Jin Jang,et al.  Displays develop a new flexibility , 2006 .

[84]  S. Ramakrishna,et al.  A review on electrospinning design and nanofibre assemblies , 2006, Nanotechnology.

[85]  Hong Kyoon Choi,et al.  Scaling laws for jet pulsations associated with high-resolution electrohydrodynamic printing , 2008 .

[86]  J. Myoung,et al.  Fabrication and characterization of ZnO nanowire transistors with organic polymer as a dielectric layer , 2008 .

[87]  Hidenori Okuzaki,et al.  Plastic Electronic Devices Through Line Patterning of Conducting Polymers , 2005 .

[88]  Christopher Pearson,et al.  The morphology, electrical conductivity and vapour sensing ability of inkjet-printed thin films of single-wall carbon nanotubes , 2009 .

[89]  Ji-Beom Yoo,et al.  Fabrication of MWNTs/nylon conductive composite nanofibers by electrospinning , 2006 .

[90]  Youlun Xiong,et al.  Thermomechanical Analysis of Film-on-Substrate System With Temperature-Dependent Properties , 2010 .

[91]  Gregory P. Crawford,et al.  Flexible flat panel displays , 2005 .

[92]  Hsien-Hsueh Lee,et al.  Inkjet printing of nanosized silver colloids , 2005, Nanotechnology.

[93]  Soo‐Hyoung Lee,et al.  Polymer solar cells based on inkjet-printed PEDOT:PSS layer , 2009 .

[94]  Zhenan Bao,et al.  Fine printing , 2004, Nature materials.

[95]  A. T. Sobczyk,et al.  Electrospraying route to nanotechnology: An overview , 2008 .

[96]  K. Guarini,et al.  High-Resolution Inkjet Printing of All-Polymer Transistor Circuits , 2009 .

[97]  Youlun Xiong,et al.  Thermomechanical analysis of thin films on temperature-dependent elastomeric substrates in flexible heterogeneous electronics , 2010 .

[98]  Ian M. Hutchings,et al.  Direct Writing Technology Advances and Developments , 2008 .

[99]  Han Ding,et al.  Motion stages for electronic packaging design and control , 2006, IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine.

[100]  Kanti Jain,et al.  Flexible Electronics and Displays: High-Resolution, Roll-to-Roll, Projection Lithography and Photoablation Processing Technologies for High-Throughput Production , 2005, Proceedings of the IEEE.

[101]  T. Someya,et al.  Conformable, flexible, large-area networks of pressure and thermal sensors with organic transistor active matrixes. , 2005, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America.

[102]  Weng-Sing Hwang,et al.  Conductive silver patterns via ethylene glycol vapor reduction of ink-jet printed silver nitrate tracks on a polyimide substrate , 2009 .

[103]  Sudipta Roy,et al.  Fabrication of micro- and nano-structured materials using mask-less processes , 2007 .

[104]  Hung-Wen Lin,et al.  The dispersion of silver nanoparticles with physical dispersal procedures , 2008 .

[105]  John A Rogers,et al.  Micro- and nanopatterning techniques for organic electronic and optoelectronic systems. , 2007, Chemical reviews.

[106]  Liwei Lin,et al.  Near-field electrospinning. , 2006, Nano letters.

[107]  Andreas Greiner,et al.  High Precision Deposition Electrospinning of nanofibers and nanofiber nonwovens , 2009 .

[108]  Yiu-Wing Mai,et al.  Dispersion and alignment of carbon nanotubes in polymer matrix: A review , 2005 .

[109]  Junsheng Yu,et al.  Conducting PEDOT–PSS composite films assembled by LB technique , 2007 .

[110]  Yulin Yang.  Analysis of Dynamic Performance of 2-RUUS Mechanism , 2009 .

[111]  Takao Someya,et al.  Organic transistors manufactured using inkjet technology with subfemtoliter accuracy , 2008, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

[112]  Ilhan A. Aksay,et al.  Scaling laws for pulsed electrohydrodynamic drop formation , 2006 .

[113]  Steve Lien-Chung Hsu,et al.  Synthesis of contamination-free silver nanoparticle suspensions for micro-interconnects , 2007 .

[114]  Mohan Edirisinghe,et al.  PZT pillars for 1-3 composites prepared by ink-jet printing , 2001 .

[115]  Shlomo Magdassi,et al.  Ink‐Jet Printing of Metallic Nanoparticles and Microemulsions , 2005 .

[116]  Heli Jantunen,et al.  Inkjet printing of electrically conductive patterns of carbon nanotubes. , 2006, Small.

[117]  Jungho Hwang,et al.  Design and evaluation of a silicon based multi-nozzle for addressable jetting using a controlled flow rate in electrohydrodynamic jet printing , 2008 .

[118]  J. Rogers,et al.  Finite deformation mechanics in buckled thin films on compliant supports , 2007, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

[119]  P. Duineveld,et al.  The stability of ink-jet printed lines of liquid with zero receding contact angle on a homogeneous substrate , 2003, Journal of Fluid Mechanics.

[120]  Robert H. Reuss,et al.  Macroelectronics: Perspectives on Technology and Applications , 2005, Proceedings of the IEEE.

[121]  H. Le,et al.  Progress and Trends in Ink-jet Printing Technology , 1998, Journal of Imaging Science and Technology.

[122]  Daniel Bonn,et al.  Controlling droplet deposition with polymer additives , 2000, Nature.

[123]  Wenfeng Shen,et al.  The preparation of ZnO based gas-sensing thin films by ink-jet printing method , 2005 .

[124]  C. Grigoropoulos,et al.  All-inkjet-printed flexible electronics fabrication on a polymer substrate by low-temperature high-resolution selective laser sintering of metal nanoparticles , 2007 .

[125]  Gunnar Sorensen,et al.  Ion bombardment of electrosprayed coatings: an alternative to reactive sputtering? , 1999 .

[126]  Jooho Moon,et al.  Influence of fluid physical properties on ink-jet printability. , 2009, Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids.

[127]  Dae-Young Lee,et al.  Electrohydrodynamic printing of silver nanoparticles by using a focused nanocolloid jet , 2007 .

[128]  Michael D. McGehee,et al.  Polymer-based solar cells , 2007 .

[129]  Z. Suo,et al.  Mechanics of thin-film transistors and solar cells on flexible substrates , 2006 .

[130]  A. Jaworek,et al.  Classification of the Modes of Ehd Spraying , 1999 .