Oct 21, 2015 | By Tess
Britain’s Loughborough University has been awarded £3.9 million from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) in order to develop their SYMETA research program. The Symeta program – which stands for Synthesizing 3D Metamaterials – will be focused on creating a new, more ecological way of manufacturing high frequency circuitry for RF, microwave, and THz applications.
University of Loughborough
The most standard current method of producing and assembling printed circuit boards consists of the use of harsh chemicals, high temperatures, etching, and high volumes of water, making it an extremely wasteful and environmentally taxing process. Researchers at Loughborough University are determined to find another, more ecological way to make the printed circuit boards, and they may have found a potential solution using metamaterials and additive manufacturing techniques.
Metamaterials, in brief, are engineered composite materials that possess electromagnetic properties that do not exist naturally. The team at Symeta will work with metamaterials in order to design and make high frequency circuitry, or “meta circuits” to be used in devices such as wireless phones, and Wi-Fi routers.
Right: Professor Yiannis Vardaxoglou
The Symeta team at Lobourough is being led by Professor Yiannis Vardaxoglou, who said of the endeavor, “Introducing these novel structures into the complex world of electronic design will offer a radical new way of designing and manufacturing electronics at low cost.” The University will also work alongside research departments at other British Universities including the Universities of Exeter, Oxford, Sheffield, Queen Mary, and the University of London.
In order to create the “meta circuits” the Symeta team will be working with particulate materials, metals, polymers, and ceramics, which can all be used in 3D printing. The materials will be 3D printed in various designs with metallic inclusions inside that could perform the same functions as a ground plane, components and transmission lines. What the 3D printing process of producting means is that the PCBs will be able to vary in shape, unlike the traditionally manufactured ones, which had to be flat. Vardaxoglou says, “They can be conformal, so they can fit into awkward shapes, like a pacemaker.”
Conventional PCBs
At this point in the research, the materials for the 3D printed PCBs are limited to ones that can melt at 220 degrees celcius, the highest degree for 3D printing nozzles. Symeta researchers will look into extending this as part of their work as well.
Vardaxoglou is confident that with the proper technology – a two or three nozzle machine able to handle different particulates, with mass production capabilities - the Symeta method of additively manufacturing printed circuit boards will compete with the conventional way of manufacturing them.
The £3.9 million that Symeta have received in funding is a part of the EPSRC’s £21 million to be put towards investing in research aimed at dealing with major engineering and science issues. Jo Johnson, Britain’s Science Minister, said of the EPSRC’s investments, “We want the UK to be the best place in Europe to innovate and this £21 million investment will bring together the nation’s researchers to address some of the most pressing engineering challenges we face.”
Vardaxoglou has said of the generous endowment, “We are grateful to EPSRC for supporting such an innovative and timely project.”
Posted in 3D Printing Application
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