Fabrication of electronic devices with multi-material drop-on-demand dispensing system

Abstract

One of the key engineering applications of drop-on-demand (DoD) micro-dispensing system is to fabricate functional devices. Diverse materials with wider range of properties are needed in this process. To satisfy this requirement, multiple printheads on micro-level fabrication are preferred to perform multi-material dispensing task. This article proposes a micro-dispensing system with two printheads (micro-valve printhead and piezoelectric printhead), which overcomes the limitations from single type printhead system in various specific fabrications. This proposed system has demonstrated its capability for printing resistor and capacitor. The functionalities of these components are tested such as I–V characterisation for resistor and frequency characteristics for printed capacitor, followed by a detailed discussion and in-depth analysis. Our experimental results have approved that micro-DoD dispensing is a feasible way to fabricate passive electronic devices.

Keywords:

• drop-on-demand (DoD)
• micro-dispensing
• multiple nozzle
• multi-material dispensing
• piezoelectric printhead
• distribution functions