Ring oscillator fabricated completely by means of mass-printing technologies

We report on the first successful fabrication of an integrated circuit solely by means of fast, continuous mass-printing technology. Our demonstration object is a seven-stage ring oscillator which delivers an ac-signal with a frequency of approximately 4 Hz. The process speed of the order of 1 m/s demonstrates the high potential of mass-printing techniques for the production of low-cost electronics. By identifying major technological issues that occur upon printing of electronic circuits, routes for further development are clarified. (C) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.