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Sustainability is one of the most widely used terms in business today, especially for electronics and manufacturing but what does it mean to you? We explore the environmental, business, and economic impacts.
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This issue previews many of the important events taking place at this year's show and highlights some changes and opportunities. So, buckle up. We are counting down to IPC APEX EXPO 2024.
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Graphene and Flexible Substrates
June 1, 2018 | ICFOEstimated reading time: 1 minute
An international team of researchers reports on a new polymer-free technique for the fabrication of transparent flexible substrates using graphene. Graphene is a unique 2D material that has shown to have amazing properties which include high intrinsic carrier mobility, tunable band gap, high mechanical strength and elasticity, and superior thermal conductivity, among others. Such unique characteristics make graphene a potential material for many applications, for example its implementation for high-speed transistors, energy/thermal management and chemical/biological sensors.
In order to fully exploit the properties of this materials, previous studies have been devoted to understanding how it can be transferable to a wide variety of substrates. Several methods have been developed toward this goal and the most commonly used method is a polymer-assisted transfer process called ‘wet-transfer’. Now, the drawback of this process is that it leaves residues on the substrate, which depose a significant challenge to the fabrication process since it affects the graphene’s electrical and mechanical properties.
In a recent study published in 2D Materials, ICFO researchers Miriam Marchena, Manuel Fernandez, Tong Lai Chen, led by ICREA Prof. at ICFO Valerio Pruneri, in collaboration with researchers led by Dr. Prantik Mazumder and Dr. Robert Lee from Corning Research and Development Corporation, have demonstrated for the first time the direct transfer of graphene from Cu foil to rigid and flexible substrates, such as glass and PET, using as an intermediate layer of thin film of polyimide (PI) mixed with an aminosilane, a process that leaves the substrate free of residues.
With this technique, the team of scientists has obtained as a result a transparent device, thermally stable (350 °C) and free of polymer residue on the device side of the graphene. Their technique is the first step towards making a substrate ready for device fabrication.
The results of the study open a new window toward the use of graphene in the development of devices that can be made smaller and faster when compared to the actual silicon based devices that are beginning to show capability limitations.
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Elementary, Mr. Watson: Ensuring Design Integrity
03/28/2024 | John Watson -- Column: Elementary, Mr. WatsonBack in February, many of us watched the "Big Game." It reminded me of the saying, “It's not how you start that is important, but rather how you finish." It is perfectly okay when you are talking about sports, you get off to a bad first half and need to recover in the second half. However, when it comes to PCB design, this is not a good practice. If things start badly, they usually don't recover. They continue down that same path, costing more money and losing design time.
ASMC 2024 to Showcase AI, Smart Manufacturing and Sustainability to Advance Chip Industry Manufacturing Expertise
03/27/2024 | SEMIMore than 125 experts will offer insights into the latest semiconductor manufacturing strategies and methodologies as hundreds of industry stakeholders gather at the 35th annual SEMI Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing Conference (ASMC 2024), May 13-16 in Albany, New York.
Mycronic to Showcase More Versatile, High-productivity Assembly Solutions at IPC APEX EXPO 2024
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IPC APEX EXPO 2024: LPKF—Debunking Depaneling Industry Perceptions
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The Many Complexities of PFAS
03/26/2024 | Marcy LaRont, PCB007 MagazineIn its simplest definition, PFAS is a group of chemicals used to make fluoropolymer coatings and products that resist heat, oil, stains, grease, and water. Fluoropolymer coatings can be in a variety of products. Though this definition is not inaccurate, it can be misleading. Depending on who you ask, there are upward of 10,000 PFAS chemistries that can meet various definitions.