ScienceDaily (Feb. 1, 2008) — Researchers in California report a key advance in efforts to use inkjet printing technology in the manufacture of a new generation of low cost, high-performance electronic circuits for flexible video displays and other products. Their study* describes development of a new method for producing straighter, uniform circuits using inkjet-printing.

In the report, Dan Soltman and Vivek Subramanian note that inkjet-printed circuits must be extremely smooth and straight. That difficult feat has been elusive because the drop-by-drop nature of inkjet-printing often leaves uneven printed features on surfaces, especially a circular pattern known as the "coffee ring" effect, they note.

The scientists describe a new way to optimize printing conditions to eliminate the coffee-ring effect and produce smooth, narrow lines with an even edge. The development demonstrates the feasibility of tuning and optimizing inkjet technology for microelectronic applications, they say.

*The article "Inkjet-Printed Line Morphologies and Temperature Control of the Coffee Ring Effect" is scheduled for the March 4 issue of ACS' Langmuir.

Examples of printed line behaviors from inkjet printers: (a) individual drops, (b) scalloped, (c) uniform, (d) bulging, and (e) stacked coins. (Credit: Courtesy of the American Chemical Society)

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