Speaker: Nad Karim | Company: Sakuu Corporation | Date: 9-10 Feb 2022 | Full Presentation Join TechBlick on an annual pass to join all live online conference or online version of onsite conference access library of on-demand talks (600 talks + PDFs) portfolio of expert led masterclass year-round platform https://www.techblick.com/ Our next battery-related event will take place on 15-16 FEB 2023, covering 1) Solid-State Batteries: Innovations, Promising Start-Ups, & Future Roadmap 2) Battery Materials: Next-Generation & Beyond Lithium Ion The speakers include: General Motors, Graphenix Development, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Fraunhofer IKTS, RWTH Aachen University, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories, Meta Materials Inc, Skeleton Technologies, Solid State Battery Inc, Argonne National Laboratories, OneD Battery Sciences, VTT, Leyden Jar Technologies B.V., b-Science, Rho Motion, Wevo-Chemie, LiNA Energy, CNM Technologies, Ionblox, Empa, Zinc8 Energy Solutions, Avicenne Energy, Echiontech, South8 Technologies, Basquevolt, NanoXplore, Chasm, Li Metal, Sila Nanotechnologies, Quantumscape (tentative), Fraunhofer ISI, etc https://www.techblick.com/

In a groundbreaking new study, researchers at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities used a customized printer to fully 3D print a flexible organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display. The discovery could result in low-cost OLED displays in the future that could be widely produced using 3D printers by anyone at home, instead of by technicians inexpensive microfabrication facilities. The research is published in Science Advances, a peer-reviewed scientific journal published by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). The OLED display technology is based on the conversion of electricity into light using an organic material layer. OLEDs function as high-quality digital displays, which can be made flexible and used in both large-scale devices such as television screens and monitors as well as handheld electronics such as smartphones. OLED displays have gained popularity because they are lightweight, power-efficient, thin and flexible, and offer a wide viewing angle and high contrast ratio. “OLED displays are usually produced in big, expensive, ultra-clean fabrication facilities,” said Michael McAlpine, a University of Minnesota Kuhrmeyer Family Chair Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and the senior author of the study. “We wanted to see if we could basically condense all of that down and print an OLED display on our table-top 3D printer, which was custom built and costs about the same as a Tesla Model S.” The group had previously tried 3D printing OLED displays, but they struggled with the uniformity of the light-emitting layers. Other groups partially printed displays but also relied on spin-coating or thermal evaporation to deposit certain components and create functional devices. In this new study, the University of Minnesota research team combined two different modes of printing to print the six device layers that resulted in a fully 3D-printed, flexible organic light-emitting diode display. The electrodes, interconnects, insulation, and encapsulation were all extrusion printed, while the active layers were spray printed using the same 3D printer at room temperature. The displayed prototype is about 1.5 inches on each side and has 64 pixels. Every pixel works and displays light. “I thought I would get something, but maybe not a fully working display,” said Ruitao Su, the first author of the study and a 2020 University of Minnesota mechanical engineering Ph.D. graduate who is now a postdoctoral researcher at MIT. “But then it turns out all the pixels were working, and I can display the text I designed. My first reaction was ‘It is real!’ I was not able to sleep, the whole night.” Su said the 3D-printed display was also flexible and could be packaged in an encapsulating material, which could make it useful for a wide variety of applications. “The device exhibited a relatively stable emission over the 2,000 bending cycles, suggesting that fully 3D printed OLEDs can potentially be used for important applications in soft electronics and wearable devices,” Su said. The researchers said the next steps are to 3D print OLED displays that are higher resolution with improved brightness. “The nice part about our research is that the manufacturing is all built-in, so we're not talking 20 years out with some ‘pie in the sky vision,” McAlpine said. “This is something that we actually manufactured in the lab, and it is not hard to imagine that you could translate this to printing all kinds of displays ourselves at home or on the go within just a few years, on a small portable printer.” For more information, visit: https://twin-cities.umn.edu/news-events/researchers-develop-first-fully-3d-printed-flexible-oled-display

NTU Singapore scientists develop biodegradable printed paper batteries Once expended, eco-friendly batteries break down in soil within weeks Scientists from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) have developed paper-thin biodegradable zinc batteries that could one day become an environmentally sustainable option for powering flexible and wearable electronic systems. The NTU Singapore-developed zinc batteries are made up of electrodes (through which the electrical current leaves or enters the battery) screen-printed on both sides of a piece of cellulose paper that has been reinforced with hydrogel. Once the battery has been expended, it can be buried in soil, where it breaks down completely within a month. In a proof-of-concept experiment described in the scientific journal Advanced Science, the NTU team demonstrated how a 4cm x 4cm square printed paper battery could power a small electric fan for at least 45 minutes. Bending or twisting the battery did not interrupt the power supply. In another experiment using a 4cm x 4cm battery to power an LED, the scientists showed that despite cutting away parts of the paper battery, the LED remained lit, indicating that cutting does not affect the functionality of the battery. The scientists think their printed battery could be integrated into flexible electronics such as foldable smartphones that are already on the market, or biomedical sensors for health monitoring. Professor Fan Hongjin from the NTU School of Physical and Mathematical Sciences and the study’s co-lead author, said: “Traditional batteries come in a variety of models and sizes, and choosing the right type for your device could be a cumbersome process. Through our study, we showed a simpler, cheaper way of manufacturing batteries, by developing a single large piece of battery that can be cut to desired shapes and sizes without loss of efficiency. These features make our paper batteries ideal for integration in the sorts of flexible electronics that are gradually being developed.” Assistant Professor Lee Seok Woo from the NTU School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering and the study’s co-lead author, said: “We believe the paper battery we have developed could potentially help with the electronic waste problem, given that our printed paper battery is non-toxic and does not require aluminum or plastic casings to encapsulate the battery components. Avoiding the packaging layers also enables our battery to store a higher amount of energy, and thus power, within a smaller system.” The development of printed paper zinc batteries by the NTU research team, which also includes research fellows Dr. Yang Peihua and Dr. Li Jia, is in line with the NTU 2025 vision and the University’s Sustainability Manifesto, which aspire to develop sustainable solutions to address some of humanity’s pressing grand challenges. Fabricating ‘sandwich-style’ batteries Batteries power devices through an electrochemical reaction, which produces electrical energy. The internal workings of a battery are usually housed within a metal or plastic case. Inside this case are the cathode and anode – these are electrodes where the electrochemical reactions occur. A separator added between the cathode and anode creates a barrier and prevents the electrodes from touching while allowing electrical charge to flow freely between them, avoiding short circuits. Also inside the battery is a medium known as the electrolyte, which allows the electric charge to flow between the cathode and anode. To develop a thinner, lighter prototype with no packaging required, the NTU scientists adopted a “sandwich design” for their batteries – the electrodes are like the bread slices, and the cellulose paper that the electrodes are printed on is like the sandwich filling. The fabrication process starts with reinforcing cellulose paper with hydrogel to fill up the fiber gaps found naturally in cellulose. This forms a dense separator that effectively prevents the mixing of the electrodes, which are formulated as ‘electrode inks’ and screen-printed onto both sides of the hydrogel-reinforced cellulose paper. The anode ink is mainly made up of zinc and carbon black (a conductive type of carbon). As for the cathode ink, the scientists developed one type with manganese and another with nickel as a proof-of-concept, though the research team said that other metals could possibly be used. After the electrodes are printed, the battery is immersed in an electrolyte. A layer of gold thin foil is then coated on the electrodes to increase the conductivity of the battery. The final product is about 0.4mm thick – about the thickness of two strands of human hair. An eco-friendly alternative With hydrogel and cellulose are naturally broken down by bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms, the battery can simply be buried in the being soil at the end of its life span where it breaks down in a matter of weeks, making it a fully biodegradable product. To demonstrate the paper battery’s biodegradability, the NTU scientists buried it in the soil of a rooftop garden on the NTU campus. The hydrogel-reinforced cellulose paper started fracturing after two weeks and degraded completely within a month. Prof Fan said: “When decomposition happens, the electrode materials are released into the environment. The nickel or manganese used in the cathodes will remain in their oxide or hydroxide forms, which are close to the form of natural minerals. The zinc found in the anode will be naturally oxidized to form a non-toxic hydroxide. This points to the battery’s potential as a more sustainable alternative to current batteries.” Going forward, the NTU team hopes to demonstrate the complete integration of the printed paper battery to other printed electronics, electronic skins, as well as energy storage systems deployed in the environment. For more information, visit: https://www.ntu.edu.sg/news/detail/batteries-of-the-future-could-be-paper-thin-and-biodegradable

of Printed Hybrid Electronics Assemblies Speaker: Alison Kritz | Company: Parsons | Date: 11-12 May 2021 | Full Presentation We will present an investigation of risks of failure in a prototype printed hybrid electronics (PHE) Arduino-type circuit to be fabricated using a variety of additive manufacturing technologies including aerosol-jet, syringe, and stereolithography (SLA) printing. The interfaces of different components and materials in this design introduce potential sources of failure including thermal expansion mismatches and silver migration resulting from temperature cycling. We will discuss the design rationale, fabrication methods, and testing conditions of three different test coupons, each of which isolates a different area of interest in the PHE assembly and seeks to identify and prevent the greatest risks. Join TechBlick on an annual pass to join all live online conference or online version of onsite conference access library of on-demand talks (600 talks + PDFs) portfolio of expert led masterclass year-round platform https://www.techblick.com/ And do NOT miss our flagship event in Berlin on 17-18 OCT 2023 focused on Reshaping the Future of Electronics. This event attracts 550-600 participants from all the world and offers a superb ambience and dynamic exhibition floor. To learn more visit https://www.techblick.com/electronicsreshaped To see feedback about previous event see https://www.techblick.com/events-agenda

Enabling fine wire printing at 30 μm and less, with potential to further improve transparency and flexibility for electronic devices such as display devices and next-generation automotive window defoggers TANAKA Kikinzoku Kogyo K.K. (Head office: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director & CEO: Koichiro Tanaka), which operates the TANAKA Precious Metals manufacturing business, announced today that TANAKA has developed a Low-Temperature Sintering Nano-Silver Paste for Printed Wiring optimized for screen printing1 and current availability of samples. This product enables miniaturization and improved bending resistance of wiring, for use in screen printing, which is a mainstream printing method used in the field of printed electronics. For this reason, it is expected to be widely used for flexible devices such as smartphones and wearable devices that need bending resistance, and for improving transparency in window defoggers and other products for which demand will grow as electric vehicles become more popular. Product Features ■ Paste suited to printing fine wires of 30 μm and less Normally, the limit for printing wires in the screen printing process is about 50 μm in width. However, by combining suitable printers and screens with this paste, it is possible to print fine wires (30 μm and less) directly onto glass, which is a difficult medium for fine-line printing, and onto other materials such as PET film3 and green sheets. This will enable higher performance and improved productivity for electronic devices that require transparency, including window defoggers for next-generation vehicles and transparent antennas for 5G applications. ■ Bending resistance for printed wiring Wires printed on PET film and other bendable organic substrates (100 μm printed wiring) were proven to show zero breakages over 100,000 cycles when subjected to a bending test with a bending radius of 0.5 mm. This product is therefore expected to be used for flexible devices such as smartphones and wearable devices that need both flexibility and durability. ■ Low resistance of 10 μΩcm and less When sintered at heating temperatures of around 90°C, wires have a resistance value below 10 μΩcm, giving this product unusually low resistance even for a low-temperature sintering nanosilver paste. ■Nano-silver paste optimized for screen printing This printing paste consists of nano and submicron silver particles suited to screen printing, which is the most common printing method used in the field of printed electronics. The paste was successfully developed to create wires with good resistance to bending and improved screen printing performance, through particle size control, solvent selection, and additives like polymer compounds, to optimize it for screen printing. The use of fine wiring in using screen printing, which is a general printing process, is also expected to deliver improved productivity. As a result of these advantages, this product is expected to contribute greatly to a range of electronic devices that will contribute to the IoT (internet of things) society, from fine wire heating technologies that prevent glass fogging (a need that is expected to increase as electric vehicles become more popular) to healthcare-related wearable devices and 5G-oriented transparent antennas that do not compromise the view. Samples of the product are already available with the aim of starting mass production before the end of 2022. For more information, visit https://tanaka-preciousmetals.com/en/news_release/20211015/

Encres DUBUIT (ALDUB – EuroNext Paris) announced on January 3, 2022, that it has successfully completed the acquisition of POLY-INK, a world leader in conductive and transparent inks mainly based on nanomaterials and/or conductive polymers. This acquisition positions Encres DUBUIT as a key partner for major Printed Electronics applications by combining nanomaterials technology expertise together with application engineering capabilities, said Chrystelle Ferrari, CEO. Encres DUBUIT advances its strategy to expand worldwide by further enhancing its existing strong portfolio with sustainable and focused touch panel capabilities. With the addition of POLY-INK, Encres DUBUIT is now well-positioned to leverage its expanded customer base to create innovative biosourced solutions and substitute Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) in Sensors / Touch Screen / Flexible Screen / OLEDs / Photovoltaic Cells, said Pierre Blaix, Global Strategy Director. About Encres DUBUIT Since 1970, Encres DUBUIT’s expertise is high-technology inks and coatings dedicated to the industrial printing market, ranging from industrial marking and the use of functional inks. Encres DUBUIT serves the needs of global printers worldwide in sectors as varied as packaging, automotive, security, electronics. About POLY-INK POLY-INK, a French-based company is specialized in conductive inks. POLY-INK develops and commercializes highly-stable transparent and conductive through an innovative biosourcing process as a substitute to ITO (Indium-Tin Oxide). For more information, visit:

The PCBs are automatically placed on your fabric by the high-accuracy robotic feeder. The boards are stacked and stored in a magazine which can be automatically integrated into your E-Textile by a ZSK embroidery machine. The circuit boards are then fixed to the fabric by thread and needle. After the fixation of the PCB, the electrical connection can be embroidered by a conductive thread automatically. This way electrical connections between different PCBs can be embroidered in a fully automatic and highly scalable fashion. The embroidery machine can complete electrical circuitries including PCBs, sensors, actors, and tracks. Your E-Textiles can be completed automatically! By using the PCB Placement Devices with a multi-head embroidery machine, upscaling and mass-production of E-Textiles is easy. The PCB- Placement Device has been developed in cooperation with Robert Bosch GmbH, Germany. The PCBs can be individually designed and produced by BOSCH to suit your custom project needs. For further information please contact Ms. Melanie Hoerr, ZSK Technical Embroidery Systems, Manager of Technical Embroidery Applications, Smart & E-Textiles Email: melanie.hoerr@zsk.de

UBC researchers have created what could be the first battery that is both flexible and washable. It works even when twisted or stretched to twice its normal length, or after being tossed in the laundry. The battery is described in a new paper published recently in Advanced Energy Materials “Wearable electronics are a big market and stretchable batteries are essential to their development,” says Dr. Ngoc Tan Nguyen (he/him), a postdoctoral fellow at UBC’s faculty of applied science. “However, up until now, stretchable batteries have not been washable. This is a critical addition if they are to withstand the demands of everyday use.” The battery developed by Dr. Nguyen and his colleagues offers a number of engineering advances. In normal batteries, the internal layers are hard materials encased in a rigid exterior. The UBC team made the key compounds—in this case, zinc and manganese dioxide—stretchable by grinding them into small pieces and then embedding them in rubbery plastic, or polymer. The battery comprises several ultra-thin layers of these polymers wrapped inside a casing of the same polymer. This construction creates an airtight, waterproof seal that ensures the integrity of the battery through repeated use. It was team member Bahar Iranpour (she/her), a Ph.D. student, who suggested throwing the battery in the wash to test its seal. So far, the battery has withstood 39 wash cycles and the team expects to further improve its durability as they continue to develop the technology. “We put our prototypes through an actual laundry cycle in both home and commercial-grade washing machines. They came out intact and functional and that’s how we know this battery is truly resilient,” says Iranpour. The choice of zinc and manganese dioxide chemistry also confers another important advantage. “We went with zinc-manganese because for devices worn next to the skin, it’s a safer chemistry than lithium-ion batteries, which can produce toxic compounds when they break,” says Nguyen. An affordable option Work is underway to increase the battery’s power output and cycle life, but already the innovation has attracted commercial interest. The researchers believe that when the new battery is ready for consumers, it could cost the same as an ordinary rechargeable battery. “The materials used are incredibly low-cost, so if this is made in large numbers, it will be cheap,” says electrical and computer engineering professor Dr. John Madden (he/him), director of UBC’s Advanced Materials and Process Engineering Lab who supervised the work. In addition to watches and patches for measuring vital signs, the battery might also be integrated with clothing that can actively change color or temperature. “Wearable devices need power. By creating a cell that is soft, stretchable, and washable, we are making wearable power comfortable and convenient.” For more information, visit: https://news.ubc.ca/2021/12/09/stretchy-washable-battery-brings-wearable-devices-closer-to-reality/

Some studies have shown that nicotine, an addictive substance in electronic cigarettes, increases the risk of cardiovascular and respiratory disorders. But to get a full understanding of its potential health effects, a real-time nicotine monitoring device is needed. Such a device could also help vapers as well as non-vapers who encounter second-hand smoke measure their exposure. Now, researchers report in ACS Sensors that they have developed a battery-free, wearable device that could accomplish this task. E-cigarettes are designed to heat and aerosolize a mixture of nicotine, glycerine, propylene glycol, and flavoring additives, which the user then inhales. In the body, this mixture can affect multiple organs, including the respiratory system, where it alters airflow, increases oxidative stress, and impairs immunity. In addition, nicotine exposure can lead to lung cancer. But assessing that exposure under real-world conditions has been difficult. Current assays for measuring ambient nicotine levels are carried out in laboratory settings and require large sample volumes and days to weeks of sampling. Portable nicotine sensors are being developed as an alternative, but the two that have been reported are impractical because they rely either on the presence of sweat or sunlight to function. So Madhu Bhaskaran, Md. Ataur Rahman and Philipp Gutruf set out to design a lightweight, wearable sensor capable of detecting nicotine in real-time and sending the data wirelessly to electronic devices such as a smartphone. The team chose vanadium dioxide (VO2) on a polyimide substrate as the basis for their sensor. They showed that nicotine can bond covalently to a thin film of VO2, thereby altering the film’s conductivity to an extent that depends on nicotine concentration. The device detects the change in conductivity, amplifies the signal, and then transmits it wirelessly to a smartphone. When applied to the skin, the battery-free sensor can measure the wearer’s exposure to vaporized nicotine in the open air. The researchers say this approach expands the use of wearable electronics for real-time monitoring of hazardous substances in the environment. For more information, visit: https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/pressroom/newsreleases/2021/december/wearable-sensor-measures-airborne-nicotine-exposure-from-e-cigarettes.html

Smart sensing technology to help farmers use fertilizer more effectively and reduce environmental damage has been created by Imperial bioengineers. The technology, which is described in Nature Food, could help growers work out the best time to use fertilizer on their crops and how much is needed, considering factors like the weather and soil condition. This would reduce the expensive and environmentally damaging effects of overfertilizing soil, which releases the greenhouse gas nitrous oxide and can pollute soil and waterways. Overfertilisation has so far rendered 12 percent of once-arable land worldwide unusable and the use of nitrogen-based fertilizer has risen by 600 percent in the last 50 years. However, it is difficult for crop growers to precisely tailor their own fertilizer use: too much and they risk environmental damage and money wastage; too little and they risk poor crop yields. The researchers behind this new sensing technology say it could provide benefits for both the environment and growers. The sensor, named chemically functionalized paper-based electrical gas sensor (chemPEGS), measures levels of ammonium in soil – the compound that is converted to nitrites and nitrates by soil bacteria. Using a type of AI called machine learning, it combines this with weather data, time since fertilization, pH, and soil conductivity measurements. It uses these data to predict how much total nitrogen the soil has now and how much it will have up to 12 days in the future, to predict the optimum time for fertilization. The study identifies how this new low-cost solution could help growers yield maximum crops with minimal fertilisation, particularly for fertilizer-thirstyfertilization crops like wheat. The technology could simultaneously reduce growers’ expenses and environmental harm from nitrogen-based fertilizers – the most widely used fertilizer type. Lead researcher Dr. Max Grell, who co-developed the technology at Imperial College London’s Department of Bioengineering, said: “It’s difficult to overstate the problem of overfertilization both environmentally and economically. Yields and resulting income are down year by year, and growers don’t currently have the tools they need to combat this. “Our technology could help to tackle this problem by empowering growers to know how much ammonia and nitrate are currently in soil and to predict how much there will be in the future based on weather conditions. This could let them fine-tune fertilization to the specific needs of the soil and crops.” The researchers expect chemPEGS and associated AI technology, which are currently in the prototype stage, to be available for commercialization in three to five years with more testing and manufacturing standardization. For more information, visit: https://www.imperial.ac.uk/news/232638/low-cost-intelligent-soil-sensors-could-help/

and Stable Organic Photovoltaics Speaker: Reed Eisenhart | Company: Phillips 66 | Date: 11-12 May 2021 | Full Presentation Join TechBlick on an annual pass to join all live online conference or online version of onsite conference access library of on-demand talks (600 talks + PDFs) portfolio of expert led masterclass year-round platform https://www.techblick.com/ And do NOT miss our flagship event in Berlin on 17-18 OCT 2023 focused on Reshaping the Future of Electronics. This event attracts 550-600 participants from all the world and offers a superb ambience and dynamic exhibition floor. To learn more visit https://www.techblick.com/electronicsreshaped To see feedback about previous event see https://www.techblick.com/events-agenda

Speaker: Vinicius Zanchin | Company: Ntrium | Date: 11-12 May 2021 | Full Presentation Join TechBlick on an annual pass to join all live online conference or online version of onsite conference access library of on-demand talks (600 talks + PDFs) portfolio of expert led masterclass year-round platform https://www.techblick.com/ And do NOT miss our flagship event in Berlin on 17-18 OCT 2023 focused on Reshaping the Future of Electronics. This event attracts 550-600 participants from all the world and offers a superb ambience and dynamic exhibition floor. To learn more visit https://www.techblick.com/electronicsreshaped To see feedback about previous event see https://www.techblick.com/events-agenda