Sonder NanoSeminar: Materials and Technologies for Ultrathin Soft Micro-Electronics and Micro-Devices integration

Date

Aug 21, 2025

Time

12:00 PM - 2:00 PM

Speaker

Virgilio Mattoli

Affiliation

Center for Materials Interfaces, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (IIT)

Series

TUD nanoSeminar

Language

en

Main Topic

Materialien

Other Topics

Materialien

Host

Arezoo Dianat

Description

Soft, ultra-thin electronics based on freestanding polymer films enable seamless integration with complex surfaces such as human skin, supporting applications like imperceptible health monitoring and skin-conformal interfaces. Over the past decade, our group has explored their use in sensing and actuation. Conductive nanofilms, applied as temporary tattoos, provide excellent conformal adhesion and have proven effective as dry electrodes for surface electromyography (sEMG), demonstrating strong potential for physiological monitoring and human–machine interaction. Beyond sensing, conformable electronics can also stimulate the skin to elicit tactile sensations. Using localized electro-thermo-pneumatic transduction, we have developed ultra-thin tattoo devices capable of generating perceptible tactile feedback, pointing toward wearable tactile displays fabricated with inkjet printing and standard materials.
 Moreover, integrating this platform with two-photon lithography (2PL) enables direct fabrication of intricate 3D microstructures with sub-micron resolution on ultrathin substrates. This approach merges high-resolution additive manufacturing with versatile functionality for micro-mechanical, photonic, and biomedical applications. In this talk, we present results from the EU-funded 5D NanoPrinting and IV-Lab projects, including conformal sensors and devices realized through ultrathin films, inkjet-printed functional materials, and two-photon polymerization. Additional techniques such as self-shadowing and 3D lift-off lithography allow metallic interconnections on complex geometries, while scalable transfer methods extend 2PL-fabricated components to diverse surfaces. Together, these advances pave the way for soft MEMS that combine the adaptability of tattoo electronics with the structural complexity and functional sophistication of 3D microdevices.

Links

• More information

Last modified: Aug 21, 2025, 7:38:36 AM