Our innovative Conductive 3Dresyns are designed for excellent dispersibility and suspension stability (minimizing agglomeration) of pre- and/or post-added metallic, inorganic, and organic conductive or semiconductive materials. These systems enable ultra fast additive manufacturing of high-performance electronic devices such as OLEDs, OPVs, OTFTs, and PCBs, 3D printed at micron-scale resolution (<20–30 microns) with SLA, DLP, LCD, and Inkjet 3D printing.
Our ready-to-buy conductive resins and additives are ideal for 3D printing high-conductivity materials for electronics, including antennas for IoT applications (HF, UHF), RFID and NFC tags, OLED and OPV components, flexible PCBs, and flexible cables.
Nanomaterials integration capability
Our capabilities include incorporation, wettability control, dispersibility, and stabilization of a broad range of nano- and micron-size conductive and semiconductive materials, in powder and/or liquid form and across different polarities (from hydrophilic to hydrophobic), in custom-designed SLA, DLP, LCD, and Inkjet 3D resin systems.
Background technical reviews:
Electroforming 3Dresyns and additives
Mandrels can be printed with our water soluble sacrificial 3D resin: 3Dresyn Perfect Cast WS1, and dip coated with our conductive resins. After electrodeposition/electroplating of metals such as gold, mandrels can be easily dissolved in water.
Electronic device examples enabled by conductive 3Dresyns
Organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) are a type of Light Emitting Diode (LED) in which a film of organic compounds emits light in response to an electric current. They are used in lighting applications and in appliances that include mobile phones, MP3 players, lighting applications and electronic displays such as high definition televisions and portable devices.
Organic Photovoltaics (OPVs) devices convert solar energy to electrical energy. A typical OPV device consists of one or several photoactive materials sandwiched between two electrodes. OPVs are stacked thin films of tens to hundreds of nanometers. They have emerged as a promising candidate for affordable, clean, and renewable energy. The intrinsic problems of short exciton diffusion length and low carrier mobility in organic semiconductors creates a challenge for OPV designs for achieving optically thick and electrically thin devices to achieve sufficient light absorption and efficient electron/hole extraction.
Organic thin-film transistors (OTFTs) technology involves the use of organic semiconducting compounds in electronic components e.g. computer displays, RF tags. The fabrication process of OTFTs is less complex than conventional silicon technology, which involves high-temperature and high-vacuum deposition processes and complex photolithographic patterning methods. In general, room temperature deposition and particularly SLA/DLP 3D printing can replace the more complicated and expensive processes involved in conventional silicon technology. In addition, the mechanical flexibility of organic conductive materials and their dispersibility in our photopolymeric 3Dresyns makes them naturally compatible with plastic substrates for lightweight and foldable products.
Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs) can be custom made with our copper-based conductive 3Dresyns in minutes instead of hours in comparison with the existing time consuming traditional custom acid etching manufacturing process. Our copper-containing 3D resins, once 3D printed on rigid boards (rigid glass fibre (FR4), epoxy or phenolics) and/or on flexible boards such as high-temperature plastics such as Kapton, exhibit excellent adhesion, durability, electrical conductivity of copper, and soldering characteristics since weld easily with the solder.
ESD materials
We can custom design electrostatic dissipative (ESD) 3D resins to protect 3D printed materials against premature failure or damage due to electrostatic discharge in a variety of applications such as automotive, aerospace, electronic and electrical packaging and equipment, and other plastics applications. We can develop custom ESD materials printable by SLA, DLP, LCD and Inkjet to meet your specific performance needs.
Thermal conductivity and electrical insulation
Aluminum nitride (AlN) powders provide high thermal conductivity of around 10 W/m-K, as well as electric insulation. This material has excellent heat dissipation, which is vital in modern high-power electronic devices, such as electric vehicles in the automobile industry, high power LED lamps, and other applications.
Benefits of Conductive 3Dresyns
- Increased content of conductive material per layer can be printed vs existing conventional printing systems
- Relatively low slurry viscosities with excellent flow at high conductive content
- Broad range of finishes from hard & tough to elastic with excellent adhesion properties to adapt to rigid and flexible devices or substrates
- Excellent resolution down below to 30 microns with single photon excitation polymerization
Organic conductive materials
Compared to inorganic silicon materials, organic conductive materials are cheaper and can be 3D printed with our Conductive 3Dresyns in thicker layers than the existing contact and noncontact printing systems, to say ink-jet, photolithography, gravure, flexo and offset printing.
Despite being SLA, DLP, LCD and Inkjet printing a batch process, applications such as high performance electrode depositions can benefit from it because this technology permits printing at high resolution and high conductive-material content.
Conductive 3Dresyns are high conductive content slurries or solutions of pre-dispersed metallic, organic or inorganic conductive materials, available upon request to meet specific technical requirements.
Examples of conductive resin systems (upon request)
PEDOT
PEDOT is a family of conductive polythiophene polymers used in OLEDs, thin film transistors (TFTs), rigid and flexible translucent sensors and circuits, and other conductive and electrochemical devices. Our capabilities include dispersion and stabilization of PEDOT based materials in 3D resin systems printable with SLA, DLP, LCD and Inkjet 3D printing. Advantages include relative optical transparency once diluted (translucency), high stability, moderate band gap, and low redox potential. Another advantage of PEDOT is its intrinsic flexibility vs Indium Tin Oxide (ITO), which is too rigid and brittle for flexible applications. Its non toxic nature results in an excellent solution for 2D & 3D printed bio sensors.
For more detailed information about our capabilities in 3D printed sensors please click here.
Conductive 3Dresyn PTB7
Conductive 3Dresyns containing PTB7 or poly({4,8-bis[(2-ethylhexyl) oxy]benzo[1,2-b:4,5-b′] dithiophene-2,6-diyl}{3fluoro- 2-[(2-ethylhexyl)carbonyl] thieno[3,4-b]thiophenediyl}) for high efficiency organic solar cells (OPVs). OPV device structure: ITO/PEDOT:PSS/PTB7 :PC71BM/Ca/Al; JSC = 14.9 mA/cm2, VOC = 0.75 V, FF = 0.69, PCE = 7.4%. Features: Molecular weight: average Mw 80,000-200,000. Mw/Mn 2.4 +/- 0.6. PDI ≤3.0. Absorption λmax 680 nm (thin film).
Conductive 3Dresyn Graphene
Graphene is used as an electrode material for batteries and supercapacitors to fabricate devices with improved energy and power densities. Graphene electrodes have excellent conductivity, stability, and high surface area. However, standard graphene production methods yield thin films that aggregate or stack, reducing surface area and making the material difficult to process. Conductive 3Dresyns containing graphene microspheres, nanospheres and nanoplates can produce SLA/DLP 3D printed sheets and devices. The benefit of SLA/DLP 3D printing is the fabrication of thicker films at higher graphene content than existing technologies. Applications include graphene (nano) composite materials, conductive inks and coatings “3D resins”, and energy storage.
Conductive 3Dresyn Graphene oxide
Graphene oxide is used in many fields, including chemical sensors and biosensors in biomedical applications to detect hormonal catecholamine molecules, avidin and DNA. It is also used once functionalized with glucose oxidase and after deposition on an electrode as an electrochemical glucose sensor. Graphene oxide is transparent and can be used as visible-light transparent electrodes for both LEDs and solar cell devices. It has been used as a hole transport layer in polymer solar cells and LEDs. Features and benefits: refractive index n20/D 1.333, large surface area, high chemical stability, good charge carrier properties, chloride free (purified by dialysis), monolayer sheet, mean sheet diameter: 22 μm, 90% below 50 μm by laser diffraction.
Conductive 3Dresyn TPBi
Conductive 3Dresyn containing TPBi or 2,2′,2"-(1,3,5-Benzinetriyl)- tris(1-phenyl-1-H- benzimidazole). Used in OLED′s devices as electron transport and exciton blocking materials. Orbital energy: HOMO 6.2 eV LUMO 2.7 eV. OLED Device Performance. ITO/MoO3/NPB/Cz-BTPE/TPBi/LiF/Al (ref 2). Color: blue. Max. Luminance: 9911 Cd/m2. Max. EQE: 1.9 %.
Thermally conductive 3Dresyn AlN
Aluminum nitride (AlN) features a combination of very high thermal conductivity and excellent electrical insulation properties. Its usage is ideal for power and microelectronics systems. For example, it is used as a circuit carrier (substrate) in semiconductors, IGBT modules, telecommunications, in cooling systems as a heat-sink in LED lighting technology or high power electronics.
Electromagnetic sensors and markers
We have the capabilities to design conductive 3D resins which orientate or "react" to electromagnetic fields. This orientation can be observed visually to monitor quantitatively, once calibrated, the exposure to electromagnetic fields. This new material can be used as electromagnetic field marker or tester.
Other Conductive 3Dresyns based on specific organic conductive materials can be designed upon request to adapt to specific customer technical requirements.