An LED mounted in a hand written trace of words
Materials Engineering meets Electrical Engineering, a new way of laying circuit traces is born.
University of Illinois professors Jennifer Lewis (materials) and Jennifer Bernhard (electrical) developed a pen that holds "metallic ink" that can be used to draw a circuit trace on paper. "This is an important step toward enabling desktop manufacturing (or personal fabrication) using very low cost, ubiquitous printing tools," said Lewis. (See the paper here)
LED matrix array on drawn traces, paper flexed
Nanoparticles of element Ag are reduced in a Ag-nitrate solution, with an acid to prevent the particles from growing. The acid is removed, and the "ink" is mixed with hydroxyethyl cellulose to create a proper consistency. The liquid metal ink stays a liquid in the pen, but once applied to a surface dries quickly. The ink paths are conductive, and can maintain its conductivity on folded paper. “The key advantage of the pen is that the costly printers and printheads typically required for inkjet or other printing approaches are replaced with an inexpensive, hand-held writing tool,” says Lewis.
An artistic explosion of drawn circuits will follow the immediate release of the ink to consumers. In fact, the research team let artist Jung Hee Kim use the ink in the painting below, titled "Sae-Han-Do."
Sae-Han-Do by Jung Hee Kim with one LED mounted in the house roof
The team plans to make other inks that will allow for drawing/writing on other surfaces including other conductive metals. Multilayer circuits in a whole new way.
I have wanted this for years. Collaboration between practices shows its potential, more of us should work together.
Eavesdropper
