Researchers from Auburn University and NASA Marshall Space Flight Center have demonstrated that conductive metal structures can be printed in microgravity without liquid inks, using a compact, self-contained system that generates, deposits, and sinters metal nanoparticles on demand. The work, published in npj Advanced Manufacturing, presents results from a two-day parabolic flight campaign and represents a step toward on-demand electronics fabrication during long-duration space missions.
A Dry, Inkless Approach
The technology at the center of the study is a dry additive nanomanufacturing (Dry ANM) platform developed at Auburn University. Rather than relying on pre-made inks or powders, the system uses laser ablation to vaporize solid silver or copper targets, condenses the resulting vapor into nanoparticles within a mini-chamber, and transports them to the substrate via argon carrier gas, where a second laser sinters them in real time. The printer measures roughly 610 mm on each side and integrates particle generation, deposition, and sintering into a single enclosed unit — a design constraint driven by the limited space available on spacecraft.
The system has previously been used on Earth with zinc oxide, indium tin oxide, and dielectric oxides in addition to silver and copper. The team also notes that solid targets could in principle be sourced from recycled space hardware, high-density metals such as silver and copper may account for up to 10% of space debris by material density according to NASA breakup models.
Fifty Parabolas, Two Metals, Mixed Results
The flight campaign was conducted aboard a modified Boeing 727 operated by Zero-G Corporation in Salina, Kansas. Over two days, the aircraft performed 50 parabolic maneuvers, each delivering approximately 25 seconds of microgravity. Researchers printed silver and copper traces during those intervals — including straight lines, 5G antenna patterns, interdigital electrodes, and a spiral — and compared results against terrestrial control samples produced beforehand with identical parameters.
Silver performed well under microgravity conditions. The reduced cabin pressure (75 kPa) and absence of gravity increased particle flow to the substrate, which thickened the printed lines and promoted denser particle packing and faster neck formation between particles. Five-pass silver tracks printed in flight achieved a mean resistivity of 13.8 μΩ·cm, compared to 26.5 μΩ·cm on the ground — a 49% reduction. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) confirmed denser microstructure and larger average particle contact areas in the microgravity samples.
Copper presented a different outcome. The same elevated particle flux caused localized overmelting: cross-sectional area increased roughly sevenfold in microgravity, but resistance did not decrease proportionally. Copper resistivity rose from 41.3 μΩ·cm on the ground to 160.8 μΩ·cm in flight across the 8-to-14-pass range. The authors attribute this to copper’s lower melting point and higher oxidation tendency, which made the material more sensitive to the additional thermal load. A mid-flight reduction in laser fluence of 1% was not sufficient to prevent the melt-pool discontinuities observed in SEM imaging. The authors indicate that reducing laser power density for copper in future campaigns should address the overmelting problem.
Why Printing Electronics in Space Remains Difficult
Most electronic printing methods developed for space rely on solvent-based inks, and that dependency creates compounding problems in microgravity. Droplet behavior changes without gravity to guide deposition, nozzles clog more readily, and post-processing steps such as washing or separating prints from liquid resin become impractical in a weightless environment. While AM has made meaningful inroads for structural and polymer parts in space, functional electronics — conductive traces, sensors, antennas — have remained out of reach for on-demand in-orbit fabrication.
Several research groups have tested ink-based approaches in parabolic flight with partial success. Iowa State University‘s NINJAS team demonstrated electrohydrodynamic inkjet printing of conductive circuit patterns in zero gravity, though the method remained dependent on precise fluid delivery and droplet control. The University of Glasgow‘s granular feedstock system, tested during European Space Agency (ESA) parabolic flights, avoids conventional filaments and has explored integrating electronics into printed components, but has not yet demonstrated conductive trace printing in microgravity. The Auburn-NASA approach removes the liquid dependency at the source — no ink, no solvent, no fluid management system.
Titled “On-demand additive nanomanufacturing of electronics in microgravity: towards in-space manufacturing of electronics and functional devices,“ the study was conducted by Colton Bevel, Adib Taba, Aarsh Patel, Steven Peeples, Jennifer M. Jones, Curtis Hill, and Masoud Mahjouri-Samani.
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Featured image shows Dry-ANM Microgravity Printing Campaign. Image via Colton Bevel et. al, npj Advanced Manufacturing.
