Colloidal Nanosurfactants for 3D Conformal Printing of 2D van der Waals Materials |
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Authors: | Minxiang Zeng Wenzheng Kuang Irfan Khan Dali Huang Yipu Du Mortaza Saeidi-Javash Lecheng Zhang Zhengdong Cheng Anthony J. Hoffman Yanliang Zhang |
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Affiliation: | 1. Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, 46556 USA;2. Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, 46556 USA;3. Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, 77843 USA;4. Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, 77843 USA Chemical Engineering Department, Texas A&M University at Qatar, P.O. Box 23874, Doha, Qatar |
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Abstract: | Printing techniques using nanomaterials have emerged as a versatile tool for fast prototyping and potentially large-scale manufacturing of functional devices. Surfactants play a significant role in many printing processes due to their ability to reduce interfacial tension between ink solvents and nanoparticles and thus improve ink colloidal stability. Here, a colloidal graphene quantum dot (GQD)-based nanosurfactant is reported to stabilize various types of 2D materials in aqueous inks. In particular, a graphene ink with superior colloidal stability is demonstrated by GQD nanosurfactants via the π–π stacking interaction, leading to the printing of multiple high-resolution patterns on various substrates using a single printing pass. It is found that nanosurfactants can significantly improve the mechanical stability of the printed graphene films compared with those of conventional molecular surfactant, as evidenced by 100 taping, 100 scratching, and 1000 bending cycles. Additionally, the printed composite film exhibits improved photoconductance using UV light with 400 nm wavelength, arising from excitation across the nanosurfactant bandgap. Taking advantage of the 3D conformal aerosol jet printing technique, a series of UV sensors of heterogeneous structures are directly printed on 2D flat and 3D spherical substrates, demonstrating the potential of manufacturing geometrically versatile devices based on nanosurfactant inks. |
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Keywords: | 2D materials 3D conformal printing colloidal inks nanosurfactants |
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