Printing high-resolution conformal electronics on meter-scale surfaces using template-confined microfluidics

Abstract

Printing multifunctional surficial electronics on free-form structural parts, components, or equipment is critical for seamless integration with artificial intelligence. However, efficiently fabricating high-resolution complex patterning on arbitrary large-area substrates remains challenging. Herein, a template-confined microfluidic method that synergistically combines soft-imprinting and selected-location printing is reported for scalable printing of conformal electronics. This method allows precise printing of multiple materials and structures on large-area flexible/rigid and flat/curved substrates. The printed line width, confined by microarchitectural templates, reaches a high resolution of 300 nm. The microarchitecture topography is systematically investigated to optimize the wicking effects within the cross-scale templates. As a result, a phased-array antenna on a 1.25-meter-scale 3D surface can be fabricated in just 20 min due to the multi-directional parallel wicking occurring at multiple printing locations. Additionally, the printed circuits, embedded within and protected by the microarchitectural template, exhibit exceptional robustness by maintaining their initial resistance even after undergoing 600 cycles of an abrasion test. Furthermore, high-precise printing of commonly used functional nano-inks and graphics printing on arbitrarily curved substrates were also realized. Lastly, the printed multifunctional sensing platforms and the conformal antennas show promising applications in intelligent detection and advanced aerospace vehicles.