Printing and formulation
The GEIC Printing Laboratory gives our members access to advanced printing capability to add functionality to structures and fabrics.
We have a suite of printing techniques from small-scale inkjet printing to production capable screen, gravure and flexographic printing. We can print 2D material-based functional inks with high precision and reproducibility to enable prototyping and pilot production of circuitry and sensors.
Our team is available to help devise projects, guide product development and undertake research in collaboration with our members. Services include formulation of inks and pastes with a variety of properties, design of printed circuits and ancillary electronics and production of prototypes.
We work with a number of UK and international partners to give our members access to world-class expertise and novel printing materials.
The services we offer are collated into four packages which cover the range of our capabilities.
Formulation
Our formulation package is designed to give access to all necessary equipment for formulation of inks.
The package includes:
- dedicated bench space and fume cupboard access
- tools such as Silverson high shear mixers and SpeedMixers for producing inks
- doctor blade coating for producing samples
- characterisation of electrical and rheological properties, and particle size
This package allows our members to design, formulate and test new inks for printing techniques. Please contact us for more information on pricing and availability.
Screen printing
Our screen printing package is designed around our Microtec MTP1100 screen printer. The printer is a medium size, advanced screen printer with capability to produce prints up to 650mm x 650mm. We can print with a line resolution down to ~100µm and print aligned patterns using in-built fiducial alignment cameras with accuracy ~10µm. The printer is available to be run by our members or by our staff.
This package includes:
- dedicated bench space and fume cupboard access
- use of a Microtec MTP1100 printer with operator support and supervision
- circuit design and materials procurement
- characterisation of electrical properties
Please contact us for more information on pricing and availability.
Roll-to-roll printing
This package allows access to our Coatema Basecoater which has interchangeable print heads for gravure, flexographic and slot die printing on a continuous system. The printer is designed for pilot production before stepping up to full production. The printer is equipped with a convective air dryer and can print at speeds up to 20m/min with a resolution down to ~100µm. The printer is only run by our operators.
The package includes
- dedicated bench space and fume cupboard access
- use of a Coatema Basecoater printer
- circuit design and materials procurement
- characterisation of electrical properties
Please contact us for more information on pricing and availability.
Inkjet printing
This package allows access to our R&D PiXDRO LP50 inkjet printer, which can print with high resolution, line widths down to ~10µm. It is designed for research and development of processes and applications, as well as evaluation and development of inkjet materials. It is a flexible system with interchangeable print heads. It can be used for printed electronics, photo-voltaics and biomedical applications.
The package includes:
- dedicated bench space and fume cupboard access
- use of a PiXDRO LP50 printer
- circuit design and materials procurement
- characterisation of electrical properties and rheological properties
Please contact us for more information on pricing and availability.
Our team
- Andrew Strudwick - Application Manager
- Jane Harper - Research Technician
- Katy Ainsworth - Application Specialist
We use our specialist equipment and expertise in the CVD graphene space to run collaborative projects that address all elements within a supply chain, as well as pull together contacts and companies to drive graphene commercialisation end-to-end. All of our team have experience working in industry and an understanding of what is required in a collaborative project to achieve the best outcomes.
Andrew Strudwick / Application Manager