Simon Rihm | Notion Systems: How do modern industrial printheads coordinate ten thousand nozzles ejecting 100,000 droplets per second?
00:07:47 - 00:09:46
Other snippets from this talk
Summary of the clip:
How do modern industrial printheads coordinate ten thousand nozzles ejecting 100,000 droplets per second?
At the heart of industrial inkjet printing lies the precise control of fluid dynamics and piezoelectric mechanics. Inside each nozzle chamber, an integrated piezoelectric membrane acts as a mechanical actuator. When triggered by a highly optimized electrical pulse—referred to as a fire pulse or waveform—the membrane deflects, initiating an acoustic pressure wave that propagates within the fluid cavity to cleanly eject a single droplet.
This mechanism operates as a massive parallel processing system, rather than a slow serialized print. Modern printheads feature over 10,000 individually addressable nozzles per unit, with each nozzle capable of firing up to 100,000 micro-droplets per second. This high firing frequency enables rapid pattern generation without sacrificing high spatial resolution.
Because the digital controller can make localized, microsecond-level decisions for each independent nozzle, this non-contact process avoids the need for physical masks or screen-printing frames. This contactless, digital architecture makes wet-on-wet processing and rapid design alterations instantly realizable on the factory floor.
In this short video, you can learn:
* The exact electromechanical principles of piezoelectric membrane deflection and acoustic wave generation in inkjet nozzles.
* How massive parallelization scales inkjet throughput with over 10,000 nozzles per unit.
* Why digital, touchless, maskless operation enables immediate wet-on-wet processing changes.
📋 **Clip Abstract** Piezoelectric inkjet technology leverages acoustic waves within fluid micro-chambers to eject droplets at ultra-high frequencies. With thousands of parallel, digitally controlled nozzles, this non-contact process enables high-throughput pattern deposition without physical masks.
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#PiezoelectricInkjet, #AcousticWaveEjection, #MasklessDeposition, #DropOnDemand, #PrintedElectronics, #AdditiveManufacturing
This is a highlight of the presentation:
From Subtractive to Additive: Shaping the Future of R&D with the new n.jet evo
Future of Electronics RESHAPED USA 2026
10-11 June 2026
Computer History Museum, Mountain View, California, USA
Organised By:
TechBlick
More Highlights from the same talk.
00:03:22 - 00:05:40
Can additive manufacturing really replace a 6-step subtractive photolithography process with a single step?
Can additive manufacturing really replace a 6-step subtractive photolithography process with a single step?
Subtractive photolithography has long been the bottleneck in electronic and advanced display manufacturing. A typical functional layer requires six distinct steps: substrate preparation, uniform layer deposition, resist coating, exposure, development, etching, and final resist stripping. This multi-step cycle results in significant material waste, high energy consumption, and long cycle times, limiting rapid prototyping and high-yield manufacturing scalability.
By transitioning to direct-write additive manufacturing via inkjet technology, companies can bypass this entire lithographic loop. Printing the etch resist directly eliminates two entire process steps. More dramatically, directly printing the functional material itself reduces the manufacturing workflow from six steps down to a single, high-precision deposition step.
This process consolidation translates into a paradigm shift for display and semiconductor packaging. It minimizes capital expenditure on etching equipment, slashes chemical waste, and drastically lowers environmental impact, demonstrating the massive commercial viability of industrial inkjet systems.
In this short video, you can learn:
* Why traditional subtractive processing requires six separate, resource-intensive lithography steps.
* How direct-write additive manufacturing consolidates the production workflow down to a single step.
* The strategic cost, energy, and material advantages of replacing subtractive etching with additive inkjet technology.
📋 **Clip Abstract** Direct-write additive inkjet printing offers a highly efficient alternative to traditional multi-step subtractive photolithography. By depositing functional layers in a single step, manufacturers can bypass complex etch-and-strip cycles, saving substantial time, energy, and raw materials.
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#DirectWriteInkjet, #EtchResistPrinting, #SubtractiveToAdditive, #AdditiveElectronics, #SemiconductorPackaging, #PrintedElectronics
05:20 - 07:05
Your inkjet printer is limited to 20-micron features. How can we print at 5 microns or less for next-gen micro-displays and electronics?
Your inkjet printer is limited to 20-micron features. How can we print at 5 microns or less for next-gen micro-displays and electronics?
The primary limitation of conventional additive technologies like thermal or piezo inkjet is the achievable feature size, which is directly tied to the minimum drop volume. For standard inkjet, this results in a practical resolution limit of around 20 microns, which is insufficient for many advanced semiconductor and display applications. This resolution barrier is what necessitates a move to more advanced jetting technologies to meet the demands of miniaturization.
Electrohydrodynamic (EHD) printing operates on a fundamentally different principle that enables ultra-high resolution. Instead of a piezo element mechanically *pushing* a picoliter-scale droplet out of a nozzle, EHD uses a modulated electric field to *pull* the ink from the nozzle tip. This process forms a Taylor cone at the meniscus and allows for the controlled ejection of extremely fine droplets when the electrostatic forces overcome the surface tension of the ink.
The physics of EHD enables a much higher energy density at the nozzle, making it possible to generate droplets in the femtoliter range—orders of magnitude smaller than standard inkjet. This directly translates to a massive leap in resolution, enabling feature sizes of around 5 microns in industrial applications today. The technology roadmap for EHD printing even extends to potential resolutions below one micron, opening up new possibilities for fabricating complex micro-scale devices.
In this short video, you can learn:
* The resolution limitations of standard piezo inkjet technology (around 20 microns).
* The fundamental physical difference between inkjet (pushing fluid) and EHD (pulling fluid with an electric field).
* How EHD achieves ultra-high resolution by generating femtoliter-scale droplets.
📋 **Clip Abstract** This clip explains why conventional inkjet technology hits a resolution wall at ~20 microns, limiting its use in advanced electronics. It then introduces Electrohydrodynamic (EHD) printing, detailing how its unique "pull" mechanism generates femtoliter-sized droplets for resolutions down to 5 microns and beyond.
🔗 Link in comments 👇
#EHDPrinting, #MicroDisplays, #HighResolutionPrinting, #FemtoliterDroplets, #PrintedElectronics, #AdvancedDisplays
00:09:49 - 00:12:42
What happens inside the complex parameter space that dictates successful functional material printing?
How do we systematically conquer the multi-variable parameter space of functional inkjet printing to transition complex materials from the laboratory to high-volume manufacturing?
Industrial inkjet printing for printed electronics and advanced functional materials is governed by a highly complex, interdependent parameter space. The final deposition quality depends heavily on the triad of ink formulation, printhead dynamics, and substrate interaction. Crucial physical properties—including fluid viscosity, surface tension, and the speed of sound within the medium—must be precisely balanced to achieve stable droplet jetting and target morphology.
To bridge the gap between initial formulation and mass production, researchers require highly specialized, adaptable R&D tools that replicate industrial-grade performance within a compact footprint. Desktop platforms must deliver uncompromising mechanical precision, utilizing advanced linear axes and integrated camera-based alignment systems. This ensures that process parameters optimized during the research phase can be seamlessly scaled and transferred to high-throughput manufacturing lines.
Optimizing droplet generation requires real-time diagnostic capabilities to monitor fluid behavior at the nozzle plate. Advanced drop-watching systems are essential for analyzing droplet uniformity, detecting satellite droplet formation, and verifying nozzle consistency. By capturing these microsecond-scale dynamics, process engineers can systematically refine waveform design and ink rheology to ensure reliable, defect-free deposition of functional materials.
In this short video, you can learn:
* How the complex interplay of ink properties, printhead mechanics, and substrate characteristics dictates printing quality.
* The critical role of high-precision linear axes and camera alignment in scaling R&D processes to mass production.
* How real-time drop-watch diagnostics enable the analysis of droplet uniformity, satellite formation, and nozzle consistency.
📋 **Clip Abstract** The speaker discusses the complex parameter space of inkjet printing, highlighting how ink properties, printheads, and substrates interact to determine deposition characteristics. He then introduces a compact, high-precision desktop R&D printer equipped with linear axes, an alignment camera, and a proprietary drop-watch system for real-time droplet analysis.
🎤 Speaker: Simon Rihm
🏢 Company: Notion Systems
📅 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
#DropWatcherDiagnostics, #JettingWaveformOptimization, #MicronPlacementAccuracy, #FunctionalInkDynamics, #PrintedElectronics, #AdditiveMicrofabrication