Effect of infill patterns on print quality of dispenser-printed electronic ink

Abstract

The effect of six different infill patterns on the print quality of a dispenser-printed silver ink on Kapton polyimide film is investigated. The results indicate that improved and more complex printed electronic structures can be produced due to the improvement in print homogeneity. Dispenser printing is a rapid manufacturing process using direct write technology that can be used to deposit a broad range of inks onto substrates irrespective of their surface geometry. Standard three-dimensional printer infill patterns known as line, rectilinear, concentric, honeycomb, Hilbert curve and Archimedean chords were tested at densities of 30, 50 and 70%. The prints were timed allowing comparison of print speed. After curing, the coverage was checked and the surface roughness (Ra) was measured. The results showed that only the rectilinear infill pattern at 50% density print, and the rectilinear and honeycomb infill patterns at 70% density achieved 100% coverage. The 50% rectilinear print was the fastest of the 100% coverage prints, and the 70% honeycomb print had the lowest surface roughness. The rectilinear pattern at 50% is recommended if there is only one layer to print. The honeycomb pattern is recommended for multilayer prints, where surface roughness is the key.