Pradeep Subedi | Irisi Light Technologies: What are the advantages and disadvantages of using 2D materials in ink-based approaches for printed electronics?

Can 2D Black Phosphorus Eliminate the Gluing Costs of Silicon Photonics?

Silicon photonics has revolutionized data communication, yet the integration of active components remains a primary bottleneck. Today, manufacturers must physically glue discrete III-V semiconductor lasers, LEDs, and photodetectors onto silicon photonic chips. This hybrid packaging process is notoriously complex, precise, and accounts for up to 20% of the overall device cost.

Iris Light Technologies is addressing this cost and manufacturing challenge by developing a direct-printing method using black phosphorus, marketed as "Nanoblack" ink. Black phosphorus possesses a direct, tunable bandgap and high carrier mobility, making it an ideal candidate for optoelectronic devices. By utilizing additive manufacturing on a wafer scale, this approach enables direct integration of active emitters and detectors onto silicon or silicon nitride waveguides.

This additive printing strategy bypasses traditional epitaxial growth and pick-and-place packaging. It enables high-volume chip manufacturing, bypasses supply chain issues surrounding III-V substrates, and opens up broad spectral coverage options. The direct interaction of printed 2D material flakes with underlying waveguides sets a new paradigm for monolithically integrated silicon photonics.

In this short video, you can learn:
* Why discrete packaging of light sources currently accounts for 20% of silicon photonics costs.
* The key optoelectronic advantages of black phosphorus, including direct bandgap tunability.
* How additive "Nanoblack" ink enables wafer-level deposition of active photonic components.

📋 **Clip Abstract** This clip explains how direct wafer-level deposition of 2D black phosphorus ink can replace the expensive process of gluing III-V components in silicon photonics. It details the material benefits of black phosphorus, including its tunable bandgap, and how this enables scalable chip manufacturing.

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Can Printed Black Phosphorus Photodetectors Compete with III-V State-of-the-Art Responsivity?

Historically, 2D material-based photodetectors struggled to match the raw performance metrics of traditional III-V semiconductors. For instance, at the critical telecom band of 1550 nm, commercial III-V photodetectors boast responsivities ranging between 900 mA/W and 1.2 A/W. Early black phosphorus devices yielded only a fraction of this, but rapid material and process optimizations are closing this performance gap faster than expected.

Over the past year, Iris Light Technologies achieved a 10X performance jump, climbing from 5 mA/W to 50 mA/W, and recently hit 500 mA/W without even optimizing the device geometry. Crucially, these measurements were taken on un-integrated devices. By moving to a waveguide-integrated architecture, where the evanescent wave couples directly into the printed material, the team expects to reach or exceed III-V responsivity standards.

Beyond raw performance, this 2D printing approach offers massive structural and commercial advantages. Because black phosphorus is not a restricted or critical mineral, this additive manufacturing technique dramatically lowers fabrication costs. It removes the complex supply chain and thermal budget issues typically associated with integrating III-V compound semiconductors onto silicon.

In this short video, you can learn:
* The trajectory of black phosphorus responsivity compared to telecom-grade III-V detectors.
* Why waveguide integration will unlock the true performance limits of printed 2D photodetectors.
* The supply chain and cost benefits of using abundant black phosphorus over critical compound semiconductors.

📋 **Clip Abstract** This clip reviews the rapid progress of printed black phosphorus photodetectors toward matching the 1550 nm responsivity of commercial III-V devices. It outlines how forthcoming waveguide integration and geometry optimization will allow these cost-effective, printed devices to rival standard semiconductor performance.

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How can printed electronics transition from highly variable aerosol jet prototyping to highly uniform, sub-micron device production?

Aerosol jet printing (AJP) serves as a valuable tool for the initial characterization of novel 2D material inks, particularly those formulated with exfoliated flakes rather than spherical nanoparticles. While AJP can successfully yield functional prototype devices, the deposition process suffers from inherent instability. Process drift and overspray introduce significant spatial and structural variations across the printed film, compromising device-to-device consistency.

These deposition anomalies directly manifest as electrical performance variations, such as an eight percent resistivity variation that degrades the signal-to-noise ratio at different operating voltages. To mitigate these fluctuations, a transition away from conventional AJP to proprietary deposition methodologies is required. Optimizing the deposition technique stabilizes the material matrix, minimizing process errors and narrowing the resistivity distribution.

Furthermore, scaling down film thickness is critical for integrating these printed layers into high-performance electronic architectures. Transitioning from micrometer-scale depositions down to ultra-thin, nanometer-scale profiles dramatically alters film morphology and transport properties. Refining the deposition process allows for precise control at these sub-micron dimensions, ensuring uniform coverage and superior electrical performance.

In this short video, you can learn:
* How aerosol jet printing enables the initial characterization of flake-based inks.
* The impact of deposition process variations and overspray on film resistivity.
* The transition from micrometer-scale to nanometer-scale film thicknesses.

📋 **Clip Abstract** The speaker discusses how aerosol jet printing was initially used to characterize their flake-based ink, despite process variations and overspray causing an eight percent resistivity variation. He explains that they have transitioned to a different, proprietary deposition technique to minimize these errors and have reduced film thickness from over a micron down to the nanometer scale.

🎤 Speaker: Pradeep Subedi
🏢 Company: Iris Light Technologies Inc.
📅 Event: Future of Electronics RESHAPED USA 2026
📍 Location: Computer History Museum, Mountain View, California, USA

🌐 Learn more at the next TechBlick event: https://www.techblick.com