Northeastern University

Zhimin Chai

Ahmed Busnaina

Cihan Yilmaz

Salman A Abbasi

Adnan Korkmaz

Interfacial convective assembly can assemble any type of nanoparticles or other nanoelements in minutes to form microscale and nanoscale patterns in vias or trenches in patterned substrates. A solvent film is deposited on a patterned substrate. An aqueous suspension of nanoparticles is deposited onto the solvent film, thereby forming an interfacial liquid system comprising the nanoparticles within an enclosed space on the substrate. The substrate is then heated, thereby inducing convective flow in the interfacial liquid system. The convective flow includes solutal Marangoni convective flow in a direction towards the patterned substrate, causing nanoelements to be transferred to and bind to the patterned substrate. The nanoelements can be assembled on both hydrophilic and hydrophobic surfaces. Nanoparticles can fuse during the process to provide solid or single crystalline electrical circuit components.

High rate printing of microscale and nanoscale patterns using interfacial convective assembly

A scalable printing process capable of printing microscale and nanoscale features for additively manufacturing electronics is provided. This fast, directed assembly-based approach selectively prints microscale and nanoscale features on both rigid and flexible substrates. The printing speed is much faster than state-of-the-art inkjet and flexographic printing, and the resolution is two orders of magnitude higher, with minimum feature size of 100 nm. Feature patterns can be printed over large areas and require no special limitations on the assembled materials. Hydrophilic/hydrophobic patterns are used to direct deposition of nanomaterials to specific regions or to selectively assemble polymer blends to desired sites in a one-step process with high specificity and selectively. The selective deposition can be based on electrostatic forces, hydrogen bonding, or hydrophobic interactions. The methods and nanoscale patterned substrates can be used with polyelectrolytes, conductive polymers, colloids, and nanoparticles for application in electronics, sensors, energy, medical devices, and structural materials.

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Revere, MA, United States of America

Zhimin Chai