CAREER: A Novel Electrically-assisted Multimaterial Printing Approach for Scalable Additive Manufacturing of Bioinspired Heterogeneous Materials Architectures

The integration of metal and polymer in a multi-material architecture has found widespread applications in fields ranging from 3D electronics, antennas, sensors, and actuators to quantum science and metamaterials. However, the fabrication of patternable metallic structures within intricate 3D polymer objects using conventional microfabrication techniques such as lithography, deposition, and etching presents formidable challenges. Existing additive manufacturing (AM)-based hybrid processes for 3D metal-plastic components are beset by high cost, time intensiveness, complexity, and constraints on design flexibility. This Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) award supports research investigating an innovative, electrically-assisted multimaterial AM approach. Success of this project will enable selective construction of metalized layouts in specific regions of a 3D polymer matrix. The creation of multi-material architectures with complex patterns using a singular process in a standard room environment will become possible. Educational outreach activities will foster diversity and encourage the active participation of minority and underrepresented students in the exciting realm of multi-material 3D printing. This CAREER project aims to elucidate the processing mechanism of an innovative multimaterial AM technique. The primary goal is to explore development of scalable manufacturing intricate meta-polymer architectures using a single process by seamlessly integrating programmable electrical fields with photopolymerization. This project seeks to advance scientific comprehension of the intricate impact of design patterns and parameters of electrical fields on the distribution and morphology of deposited metallic structures onto a polymer matrix's surface. In addition, this project aims to deepen scientific understanding by establishing interconnected correlations among interfacial microstructures, surface roughness, printing efficiency, and the mechanical performance of the bioinspired meta-polymer architectures. This research will investigate the influences of thermal conduction, diffusion, and printing solution chemistry on the growth of metallic architectures. The acquired insights are poised to contribute significantly to the development of functional metal/polymer architectures applicable across energy, aerospace, and thermal applications. Anticipated outcomes include a comprehensive understanding of the underlying mechanisms governing the fabrication of complex metallic/polymer structures, providing a theoretical foundation for multimaterial additive manufacturing. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.