Printing polymer optical waveguides on conditioned transparent flexible foils by using the aerosol jet technology

Thomas Reitberger; Gerd-Albert Hoffmann; Tim Wolfer; Ludger Overmeyer; Joerg Franke

doi:10.1117/12.2236220

27 September 2016 Printing polymer optical waveguides on conditioned transparent flexible foils by using the aerosol jet technology

Thomas Reitberger, Gerd-Albert Hoffmann, Tim Wolfer, Ludger Overmeyer, Joerg Franke

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 9945, Printed Memory and Circuits II; 99450G (2016) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2236220
Event: SPIE Organic Photonics + Electronics, 2016, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

The optical data transfer is considered as the future of signal transfer due to its various advantages compared to conventional copper-based technologies. The Aerosol Jet Printing (AJP) technology offers the opportunity to print materials with high viscosities, such as liquid transparent polymer adhesives (epoxy resins), on almost any possible substrate material and even in third dimension. This paper introduces a new flexible and comparatively cost-effective way of generating polymer optical waveguides through AJP. Furthermore, the conditioning of the substrate material and the printing process of planar waveguides are presented. In the first step, two lines with hydrophobic behavior are applied on foil material (PMMA, PVC, PI) by using a flexographic printing machine. These silicone based patterns containing functional polymer form barriers for the core material due to their low surface energy after curing. In the second step, the core material (liquid polymer, varnish) is printed between the barrier lines. Because of the hydrophobic behavior of the lines, the contact angle between the substrate surface and the liquid core material is increased which yields to higher aspect ratio. The distance between the barrier lines is at least 100 μm, which defines the width of the waveguide. The minimum height of the core shall be 50 μm. After UV-curing of the core polymer, the cladding material is printed on the top. This is also applied by using the AJP technology. Various tests were performed to achieve the optimal surface properties for adequate adhesion and machine process parameters.

Conference Presentation

Citation Download Citation

Thomas Reitberger, Gerd-Albert Hoffmann, Tim Wolfer, Ludger Overmeyer, and Joerg Franke "Printing polymer optical waveguides on conditioned transparent flexible foils by using the aerosol jet technology", Proc. SPIE 9945, Printed Memory and Circuits II, 99450G (27 September 2016); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2236220

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available