Next-generation materials and fabrication research for printed flexible electronics

印刷柔性电子（PFE）基础研究的应用是不同材料工程，智能光刻和电子物理的组合。随着产业界、学术界和公众的需求，PFEs领域正引起人们的关注。使用有机功能材料的电子和图形图案化技术之间的协同合作关系可以推动全新类型的新型PFE应用，例如柔性显示器，柔性传感器和简单的智能电子产品。功能性电子墨水材料的直接图案化可能是减轻世界对制造用于高分辨率PFE器件的纳米图案的关键需求的理想技术，而不是依赖于光刻的多个步骤。申请人曾在KAIST、MIT、Xerox Corporation等世界领先的学术和工业研发机构接受过培训，并为PFE领域带来了新的方法。 该研究计划的目标是研究通过功能电子墨水材料的直接图案化来制造PFE和柔性显示器的智能下一代技术。本研究计划的最终目标是开发具有纳米材料和纳米光刻的新型PFE技术。拟议的研究将探索使用纯化良好的石墨烯和智能可固化金属纳米颗粒用于透明导电层和透明半导体层的高分辨率PFE设备的卷对卷制造。此外，柔性基板的PFE器件将与功能纳米复合材料进行研究。纳米压印、热压印和微接触印刷技术等光刻工艺将实现高分辨率的PFE，这些PFE可以直接印刷到低成本的柔性片材或辊基材上。预计该计划将导致独特的PFE研究突破，将在SFU创造许多训练有素的HQP，并将有助于加拿大有机发光二极管（OLED）和柔性显示器研究部门。

Applications of fundamental research in Printed Flexible Electronics (PFEs) are combinations of diverse material engineering, smart lithography, and electronic physics. The PFEs field is attracting attention as industry, academia, and the public demand. A synergistic partnership between electronics and graphic patterning techniques using organic functional materials could fuel an entirely new genre of novel PFE applications, such as flexible displays, flexible sensors, and simple smart electronics. Direct patterning of functional electronic ink materials may be the ideal technology for mitigating the world's critical need to fabricate nano-patterns for high-resolution PFE devices, instead of relying on multiple steps of photo-lithography. The applicant has been trained in the world's leading academic and industrial R&D institutions such as KAIST, MIT, and Xerox Corporation, and brings novel approaches to the PFEs field. The objective of this research program is to investigate smart next-generation techniques for fabricating PFEs and flexible displays via direct patterning of functional electronic ink materials. The ultimate goal of this research program is to develop the technology for novel PFEs with nano-materials and nano-lithogrpahy. The proposed research will explore roll-to-roll fabrication of high-resolution PFE devices using well-purified graphene, and smart-curable metallic nano-particles for application of transparent conductive electric layers, and transparent semi-conducting layers. Also, flexible substrate for PFE devices will be investigated with functional nano composites. Lithographic processes like nano-imprinting, hot embossing, and micro-contact printing technology will enable high resolution PFEs, which can be printed directly onto low-cost flexible sheet or roll substrates. It is anticipated that the program will result in unique PFEs research breakthroughs , will create many well-trained HQP at SFU, and will contribute to the Canadian organic light emitting diode (OLED) and flexible display research sectors.