Abstract
Printing methods such as additive manufacturing (AM) and direct writing (DW) for radio frequency (RF) components including antennas, filters, transmission lines, and interconnects have recently garnered much attention due to the ease of use, efficiency, and low-cost benefits of the AM/DW tools readily available. The quality and performance of these printed components often do not align with their simulated counterparts due to losses associated with the base materials, surface roughness, and print resolution. These drawbacks preclude the community from realizing printed low loss RF components comparable to those fabricated with traditional subtractive manufacturing techniques. This review discusses the challenges facing low loss RF components, which has mostly been material limited by the robustness of the metal and the availability of AM-compatible dielectrics. We summarize the effective printing methods, review ink formulation, and the postprint processing steps necessary for targeted RF properties. We then detail the structure-property relationships critical to obtaining enhanced conductivities necessary for printed RF passive components. Finally, we give examples of demonstrations for various types of printed RF components and provide an outlook on future areas of research that will require multidisciplinary teams from chemists to RF system designers to fully realize the potential for printed RF components.
Highlights
Additive manufacturing (AM) and direct write (DW) printing have seen an explosion of tooling within the past decade, which has gone from large prototyping houses to consumer friendly benchtop models and engineering grade tool sets
We define AM as tools that fabricate in a layer-by-layer fashion, while DW is a selective deposition of materials with high resolution on any flat, conformal, or flexible surface
We will discuss the common methods for DW and AM techniques and review the materials that have been developed for printing radio frequency (RF) components
Summary
Additive manufacturing (AM) and direct write (DW) printing have seen an explosion of tooling within the past decade, which has gone from large prototyping houses to consumer friendly benchtop models and engineering grade tool sets. We define AM as tools that fabricate in a layer-by-layer fashion, while DW is a selective deposition of materials with high resolution on any flat, conformal, or flexible surface. These printing methods are highly attractive because traditional fabrication required for radio frequency (RF) circuitry and electronics can be eliminated, while allowing for direct digital manufacturing of arbitrarily complex objects [3,4,5,6]. Reliable and high performing printed RF passives are within reach; printed counterparts for active RF electronic circuits including inorganic transistors are still very much in their infancy [11] Active components such as transistors are still very much limited by the available material performance and printing resolution [12]. We will review key demonstrations of conformally printed antennas and their performance factors and provide outlook on promising new paths in the arena of printed RF components
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