Ink-Based Circuits on the way

Researchers from Georgia Tech, University of Tokyo and Microsoft Research have developed a novel method to rapidly make electrical circuits by printing them with inkjet printers and off-the-shelf materials. This may in turn reduce the fraction of time and cost. A wonderful idea isn't? :) :D 

The technique called instant-inkjet circuits, allows the printing of arbitrary-shaped conductors onto rigid or flexible materials and could advance the prototyping skills of non-technical enthusiasts and novice hackers. "We believe there is an opportunity to introduce a new approach to the rapid prototyping of fully custom-printed circuits," said Gregory Abowd, Regents' Professor in the School of Interactive Computing at Georgia Tech and an investigator in the study. "Unlike existing methods for printing conductive patterns, conductivity in our technique emerged within a few seconds and without the need for special equipment." 

We know that there are a lot of advancements in the field of nano engineering. Researches have used the latest advancements in chemically bonding metal particles to their concept. They used silver nanoparticle ink to print the circuits and avoid thermal boding, or sintering, a time-consuming and potentially damaging technique due to the heat.  Printing the circuits on resin-coated paper, PET film and glossy photo worked best. Researchers also made a list of materials to avoid, such as canvas cloths and magnet sheets. 

"Everything we introduced in our research is available in the market and makes it possible for people to try this at home," said Yoshihiro Kawahara, Associate Professor at the University of Tokyo and the primary investigator who developed the methodology while in Atlanta. "This method can be used to print circuit boards, sensors and antennas with little coat, and it opens up many new opportunities." 

Once printed, the circuits can be attached to electronic components using conductive double-sided tape or silver epoxy adhesive, allowing full-scale prototyping in mere hours. The home made circuits might allow tinkerers to quickly prototype crude calculators, thermostat controls, battery chargers or any number of electronic devices. "Using this technology in the class room, it would be possible to introduce students to basic electronic principles very cheaply, and they could use a range of electronic components to augment the experience," said Steve Hodges, a team member from Microsoft Research. 

Inkjet circuits can be used for a wide range of applications: 

• Rapid prototyping electronic circuits
• Inter-digitated capacitive touch sensing: Capacitive touch sensing has become an important way of detecting touch-based interaction between a user and all manner of digital devices. Using inkjet printing technology, we can fabricate uniquely shaped capacitive sensing electrodes which are optimized for a particular application. 
•  For manufacturing Printed antennas: An antenna is an electronic component that converts electrical energy into electromagnetic radiation in the form of radio waves and vice-versa.

A lot of researches are currently going on, which include a combination of inkjet printing and laser cutting. Hence we are looking for a future where we can develop 3D prototypes etc. All I can say is, this invention can bring a lot of advancements in the field of Electronics and I cant wait to see the magic of Inkjet printing technology. :) :D