Abstract
Advancements in flexible circuit interconnects are critical for widespread adoption of flexible electronics. Non-toxic liquid-metals offer a viable solution for flexible electrodes due to deformability and low bulk resistivity. However, fabrication processes utilizing liquid-metals suffer from high complexity, low throughput, and significant production cost. Our team utilized an inexpensive spray-on stencil technique to deposit liquid-metal Galinstan electrodes in top-gated graphene field-effect transistors (GFETs). The electrode stencils were patterned using an automated vinyl cutter and positioned directly onto chemical vapor deposition (CVD) graphene transferred to polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrates. Our spray-on method exhibited a throughput of 28 transistors in under five minutes on the same graphene sample, with a 96% yield for all devices down to a channel length of 50 μm. The fabricated transistors possess hole and electron mobilities of 663.5 cm2/(V·s) and 689.9 cm2/(V·s), respectively, and support a simple and effective method of developing high-yield flexible electronics.
Highlights
Since the 1960’s, integrated circuit electrodes have been fabricated from traditional copper, nickel, silver, and gold metals [1]
There are several metals that have higher conductivity compared to LM, such as copper, the low contact resistance of LM in contact with graphene is a desirable benefit over the high contact resistance of metals, such as copper, in contact with graphene [4,5]
We demonstrate the utility of the spray-on deposition of liquid-metal with a proven flexible material combination, consisting of Galinstan source and drain electrodes, an electrolytic gate comprised of honey, and a graphene channel that forms a flexible graphene field-effect transistor [14]
Summary
Since the 1960’s, integrated circuit electrodes have been fabricated from traditional copper, nickel, silver, and gold metals [1]. These traditional metals are used widely in practically all consumer electronics today, they are susceptible to degradation under repeated stress and strain [2]. Liquid-Metal (LM) Galinstan is a commercially available eutectic alloy comprising of 68% gallium, 22% indium, and 10% tin that exhibits a conductivity of 2.30 × 106 S/m, a desirable vapor pressure (
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