The gist of it: the high-throughput combinatorial printing (HTCP) method discussed here is a novel and versatile technique, capable of handling a broad range of materials including semiconductors. This suggests that it might have potential applications in the production of MicroLED or OLED screens, given that these technologies also rely heavily on the use of semiconductors.
Discovering new materials using traditional methods takes between 10 to 20 years, according to Professor Yanliang Zhang, at the University of Notre Dame. This length of time can slow the development of new technologies in a variety of fields. To speed up the process, Zhang and his colleagues have developed a 3D printing method called high-throughput combinatorial printing. It works by mixing different “inks” made of aerosolized nanomaterials in one printing nozzle. The ratio of these inks can be adjusted during the printing process, allowing the creation of materials with different local compositions and structures. This results in materials having gradient properties, meaning their characteristics vary smoothly from one area to another.
The method is versatile and can work with a range of materials, such as metals, semiconductors, polymers, dielectrics, and biomaterials. The printed materials can serve as “libraries” of thousands of unique compositions. It has already been used to identify a semiconductor material with excellent thermoelectric properties, useful for energy harvesting and cooling applications. HTCP also produces functionally graded materials that transition gradually from stiff to soft, which is beneficial for biomedical applications where a bridge is needed between soft body tissues and rigid wearable or implantable devices.
The researchers plan to integrate machine learning and AI strategies to further accelerate materials discovery. Zhang envisions an automated process for materials discovery and device manufacturing, freeing up lab teams to focus on high-level research and thinking.
OLED and MicroLED displays are created by arranging microscopic light-emitting diodes into the pixel arrays. The manufacturing process for these displays, particularly for MicroLED, is complex and involves the precise placement and integration of microscopic components. If HTCP can be fine-tuned to work at these small scales with the required precision, it could potentially speed up the manufacturing process and allow for the exploration of new display materials. Even if the researchers here don’t take that route, this research does add to the body of science that supports similar nanoprinting technologies that will be developed, in conjunction with AI tools, to accelerate display material development. So, we will undoubtedly see these techniques in different forms in future research projects.
Reference
Minxiang Zeng, Yipu Du, Qiang Jiang, Nicholas Kempf, Chen Wei, Miles V. Bimrose, A. N. M. Tanvir, Hengrui Xu, Jiahao Chen, Dylan J. Kirsch, Joshua Martin, Brian C. Wyatt, Tatsunori Hayashi, Mortaza Saeidi-Javash, Hirotaka Sakaue, Babak Anasori, Lihua Jin, Michael D. McMurtrey, Yanliang Zhang. High-throughput printing of combinatorial materials from aerosols. Nature, 2023; 617 (7960): 292 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-05898-9
