Fused Deposition Modeling‐Based 3D‐Printed Electrical Interconnects and Circuits

Abstract

Multimaterial 3D printing in electronics is expanding due to the ability to realize geometrically complex systems with simplified processes compared with conventional printed circuit board. Herein, the feasibility of using a copper‐based filament to realize 3D circuits with planar and vertical interconnections is presented. The resistivity of the tracks (1–3 mm wide) is studied with reference to printing parameters and orientation. Using lateral infill for 1 mm tracks offers lower resistance compared with longitudinal infill (≈75%). For wider tracks, the effect of infill orientation on resistance diminishes. The evaluation of tracks embedded in polylactic acid shows a drop in maximum current (to ≈11 mA) compared with exposed tracks (≈16 mA). There is no observed correlation between electrical performance and number of embedding layers. However, a significant correlation is observed between the tracks’ resistance and the amount of time the filament remains in the heated nozzle. This in‐depth study leads to optimum resolution to realize conductive tracks of 0.67 mm thickness and the first integration of fused deposition modeling (FDM)‐printed conductive traces with small‐outline integrated circuits to open a pathway for higher‐density 3D printed circuits. Finally, the transmission of digital data by a 3D printed circuit is demonstrated.

Electronic Waste Reduction Through Devices and Printed Circuit Boards Designed for Circularity

“…In the future, these innovative printing methods can be used to integrate biodegradable high-grade electronic layers on green substrates for the manufacturing of transient ICs. Additive manufacturing techniques such as filament-based fused deposition modeling (FDM) [145], direct ink writing (DIW) [146], and multimaterial 3D pririntng [147] etc. are some other recent developments which could be explored further for resource-efficient manufacturing of PCBs.…”

“…are some other recent developments which could be explored further for resource-efficient manufacturing of PCBs. Although the copper-based tracks and FR-4 substrates are still used extensively [145,146], they can be eventually replaced by advanced research such as a non-contact printing [148] for heterogeneous integration, where the less resistive and mechanically robust interconnections are formed using a high-resolution, non-contact extrusion printing methods [149].…”

“…For example, PCBs manufactured using the conventional metal-etch approach lead to 70K tons of Cu waste in core etching step [194]. Such wastage could be prevented by printing as also demonstrated in some recent works [145,147,195]. However, some of the materials currently in use for printing may still be the same as in conventional PCBs.…”

3D-printed elastomer foam-based soft capacitive pressure sensors

“…New 3D printers have emerged with more sophisticated controls and the possibility to print multi-materials (not just polymers, but also conductive inks and composites). These allow simple manufacturing of devices with higher resolution as well as their integration with readout electronics [8,22,23]. This is especially important for DIW printers as the rheological properties of different composites require different printing parameters.…”

Multidirectional strain sensor using multimaterial 3D printing

“…In all, the goal is often to print sensing layers as part of the mechanical structure. For instance, instead of separately integrating sensors on a robotic hand, researchers have explored the printing of smart materials such as 3D printable conducting thermoplastic polyurethane (TPUs), carbon black, carbon nanotubes (CNT) or their functionalized versions [2], [3].…”