Fulfilling a demand for smaller, more densely packed electronic components, Optomec has released the Aerosol Jet HD System capable of making features as small as 20 microns.
A turn-key solution powered by the Aerosol Jet Print Engine, the HD System can be plugged into almost any existing manufacturing environment. It will be especially useful to mobile device manufacturers, military applications, and medical and aerospace sectors.
“With this announcement, Optomec offers a practical, seamless and cost-effective solution that can deliver an order of magnitude improvement in dispense resolution,” comments Dave Ramahi Optomec CEO. According to Ramahi, the system addresses “the advanced packaging needs of today and providing a pathway far into the future.”
3D printed electronics for the future
The Aerosol Jet HD System can 3D print electronic features onto any substrate, dispensing the likes of antennas, shielded PCB components, semiconductors, 3D printed interconnects and sensors. The technology works by spraying a liquified material onto a surface, which then sets or can be cured using UV light.
Precise material deposition enables the creation of fine features, or conformal coatings over a wide area from 100 nanometers to 10’s of microns in thickness.
The standard system is sold configured to 100 μm resolution. In two further systems, resolution can be configured to 20 μm and 50 μm respectively.
A recipe for success
Optomec has a range of “production-ready recipes” for Aerosol Jet materials. Covering conductive, dielectric, adhesive and other applications, the recipes include silver and copper inks, epoxy and carbon restores/conductors.
The systems have a sub-$150K introductory price, and the first shipments of the machines are expected nearing the end of Q2 2018.
Earlier this week, Optomec also entered into a partnership with a distributor in China for its other proprietary LENS technology.
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Featured image shows Optomec stacked die electronics 3D printing. Photo via Optomec
