Magnetic-field-assisted 3D printing of silver microplatelets with tunable light penetration for high-quality photocuring

Through magnetic-field-assisted orientation printing, precise control of silver microplatelet orientation is achieved, resulting in a 23.3 μm improvement in linewidth precision and a 129.5% increase in curing depth. • Light-field finite element simulations reveal that oriented silver microplatelets suppress lateral light scattering while enhancing forward propagation, resolving the trade-off between resolution and curing depth in photocured metal pastes. • Despite the SPIONs-induced porous structure, the oriented silver microplatelets maintain good electrical performance, validated by a conformal antenna with measured results matching simulations, demonstrating their suitability for electronic circuit fabrication. The rapid miniaturization and increasing complexity of electronic components necessitate advanced manufacturing techniques capable of producing high-resolution conductive structures. Photocured printing technology, known for its high efficiency and exceptional resolution, holds great promise for fabricating cutting-edge electronics. However, the intrinsic constraints of the light-matter interactions make it challenging to achieve high-quality electrical circuits. Here, we report a magnetic-field-assisted orientation printing strategy that allows precise control of the orientation of silver microplatelets. This oriented alignment serves as the key to achieving programmable control of light penetration, which in turn improves printing quality. Compared with randomly oriented structures, the A90-oriented pastes exhibit a 23.3 μm enhancement in linewidth precision and a 129.5% increase in curing depth, facilitating the fabrication of circuits with simultaneously high resolution and thickness. Light-field simulations reveal that filler orientation directs incident light propagation, suppressing lateral scattering and promoting depth penetration. Furthermore, the electrical performance of the oriented silver microplatelets was systematically evaluated, and a conformal antenna fabricated on a silicon oxide substrate demonstrates good agreement between experimental measurements and simulated trends. This work demonstrates that magnetic-field-assisted orientation of anisotropic fillers provides an effective solution to the trade-off between printing resolution and curing depth in photocured metal pastes, enabling high-fidelity fabrication of functional electronic devices. Download: Download high-res image (219KB) Download: Download full-size image