Near thermal-electric field controlled electrohydrodynamic 3D printing of high aspect ratio microstructures

Electrohydrodynamic (EHD) printing is an effective method for high-resolution two-dimensional patterning because of its high material compatibility. The latest research on three-dimensional (3D) structure fabrication has been reported for metal nanoparticles, small molecular materials, and phase change materials by process regulation. One of the main challenges in conventional EHD 3D printing of polymers is the low accuracy of filament deposition and stacking at the microscale. It is difficult to achieve a high aspect ratio (AR) for printed structures. This study develops an external field-assisted EHD printing process for polymer materials, where the filament formation can be improved by the near thermal field and the stacking accuracy of filaments is further promoted by applying an alternating voltage between layers. The feasibility of this method is demonstrated by printing polystyrene, a typical polymer material, on the silicon substrate with. The regulatory effect of the process parameters on the filament width is explored. The influence of the external thermal field on filament formation and deposition is discussed, and a promotion mechanism is revealed of alternating voltage for accurate deposition. Based on these combinative effects, micro-scale 3D structures with a high AR are successfully printed on the insulating substrate with three kinds of polymers.

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