Breakthrough by Dr. Ken-ichi Yuyamas Team
A research study group led by Dr. Ken-ichi Yuyama, a lecturer at the Graduate School of Science of Osaka Metropolitan University, has actually succeeded in printing uniformly sized droplets, with a diameter of approximately 100 µm, using a liquid film of fluorescent ink– which is around 100 times more viscous than water. This was achieved by irradiating the film with an optical vortex, leading to prints of extraordinary positional precision at the micrometer scale.
” Using an unique laser beam called an optical vortex, we have attained stable printing of high-viscosity liquids,” explained Dr. Yuyama. “This printing strategy permits the fabrication of microdroplet laser selections and the micropatterning of conductive nanoinks, along with bioinks for cell scaffolds, causing the establishment of next-generation printed electronic or photonic gadgets.”
The research results were published recently in the journal ACS Photonics.
Reference: “Fabrication of an Array of Hemispherical Microlasers Using Optical Vortex Laser-Induced Forward Transfer” by Ken-ichi Yuyama, Haruki Kawaguchi, Rong Wei and Takashige Omatsu, 13 September 2023, ACS Photonics.DOI: 10.1021/ acsphotonics.3 c01005.
Funding: Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, Japan Science and Technology Agency.
A set of 33 droplets made to develop “OMU” utilizing the optical vortex laser-induced printing method. The unique technique specifically transferred the droplets with no satellite beads produced. Credit: Ken-ichi Yuyama, Osaka Metropolitan University
A set of 33 droplets made to create “OMU” utilizing the optical vortex laser-induced printing technique. The unique technique exactly transferred the beads without any satellite droplets produced. Credit: Ken-ichi Yuyama, Osaka Metropolitan University
Ingenious technique enables cost- and time-saving microprinting technologies.
Will printed photographs ever match the precision of a mirrors reflection? Although the answer may still be no for a while, Osaka Metropolitan University scientists have made substantial strides in accuracy printing with their innovative optical vortex laser-based method that permits for the exact positioning of small beads with micrometer-scale accuracy.
Existing Challenges in Inkjet Printing
Inkjet innovation is a widely known printing method that emits microdroplets from a nozzle straight onto a surface area. However, when the ink droplets are thick, with high density, the nozzle frequently gets clogged up, a concern that has actually prompted the search for advanced technologies.
