PFI-TT: Development of a high-precision, rapid curing technology for printed electronics on low-temperature surfaces with off-the-shelf inks

这个创新伙伴关系（PFI）项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是引入制备印刷电子产品的方法。印刷电子产品的全球市场正在呈指数级增长，汽车和生物医学领域每天都有新的应用。大多数现有的应用程序经历了长期的准备过程，称为固化，在高温下的外部烘箱。这导致显著的时间和能量成本，而高温要求限制了在加热过程中可以使用而不经历熔化、翘曲或其他损坏的材料的范围。聚焦热量的快速固化技术可以降低成本，使电子产品能够在灵活、较冷的表面上制造。 最终目标是成立一家初创公司，提供快速固化解决方案，以满足从汽车到可穿戴设备等多个行业的市场需求。拟议项目将加速快速在线固化系统的设计、开发和商业化，以解决低温表面印刷电子产品的功能化问题。为了实现这一技术进步，所提出的工作的智力价值集中在（1）确定一类确定的印刷电气设备和材料组合的性能和测试要求（油墨/基材），（2）在关键成功度量的背景下获得在线固化方法和系统设计的新知识，（3）确定材料性能，设备要求，和固化工艺参数，以及（4）开发满足关键设计和工艺规范的原型在线固化系统。为了降低与拟议项目相关的风险，该团队旨在提供早期概念验证和表征测试以证明可行性，通过调查两种固化方法来纳入设计冗余，与行业专家建立战略合作伙伴关系以讨论技术障碍和创新解决方案，并进行实验测试以实现对工艺吞吐量，产量，该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Partnerships for Innovation (PFI) project is to introduce ways to prepare printed electronics. The global market for printed electronics is growing exponentially with new applications identified daily in the automotive and biomedical fields. The majority of existing applications undergo long preparation process, known as curing, in external ovens at high temperatures. This results in significant time and energy costs, while the high temperature requirement limits the range of materials that can be used without undergoing melting, warping, or other damage during the heating process. A fast curing technology that focuses heat can reduce costs, enabling the manufacturing of electronics on flexible, colder surfaces. The ultimate goal is to launch a start-up company offering fast curing solutions to meet market needs in a variety of industries, ranging from automotive to wearables.The proposed project will accelerate the design, development and commercialization of a fast, in-line curing system to address functionalization of printed electronics on low-temperature surfaces. To realize this technology advancement, the intellectual merit of the proposed work focuses on (1) determining performance and testing requirements for a class of identified printed electrical devices and material combinations (ink/substrate), (2) deriving new knowledge of in-line curing methods and system design in the context of key success metrics, (3) determining the correlation between material properties, device requirements, and curing process parameters, and (4) developing a prototype in-line curing system that meets critical design and process specifications. To mitigate the risks associated with the proposed project, the team aims to provide early proof-of-concept and characterization tests to demonstrate feasibility, incorporate design redundancy through the investigation of two curing methods, develop strategic partnerships with industry experts to discuss technical hurdles and innovative solutions, and conduct experimental testing to enable statistical analysis of process throughput, yield, and robustness.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.