2-dimensional (2D) materials are characterized as being one or two atoms thick. Graphene (image) is by far the best known 2D material. However, there are many other 2D materials with attractive properties (e.g. hexagonal boron nitrides (hBN), transition metal dichalcogenides, etc.). Due to their superior physical properties, graphene and related 2D materials have the potential to revolutionize many industries, enable development of new devices, and provide new functionalities to existing technologies. In short, these materials have the potential to be disruptive and pervasive. Despite their overwhelming promise, however, industrial scale manufacture of these materials is not yet a reality, due in part to an inability to control layer number and to print over large surface areas.

To address this problem, scientists at UMass Amherst have engineered a high-precision printing method that is compatible with current industrial manufacturing processes. This simple method allows single layer 2D material to be patterned, transferred and printed onto a substrate, enabling the fabrication of novel 2D heterostructure devices. Thus, this method will facilitate the assembly of novel devices and enable large-scale manufacture of devices with designed properties.

TECHNOLOGY DESCRIPTION

ADVANTAGES

•       Single layer printing of 2D materials

•       Control over number of layers

•       High precision printing over large areas

•       Compatible with current processing technology

APPLICATIONS

•       High Performance Electronic Devices

•       Optical Detectors

•       Energy Storage

•       Hypersensitive Sensors

ABOUT THE INVENTOR

Dr. Qiangfei Xia is a professor of Electrical & Computer Engineering at UMass Amherst and head of the Nanodevices and Integrated Systems Lab. He received his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering in 2007 from Princeton University, where he was a recipient of the Guggenheim Fellowship in Engineering (a graduate fellowship from Princeton). He then spent three years as a research associate in the Hewlett Packard Laboratories in Palo Alto, California. In October 2010, he joined the faculty of UMass Amherst as an assistant professor. He became an associate professor with tenure in January 2016 and then a full professor in September 2018.

Dr. Xia's research interests include beyond-CMOS devices, integrated systems and enabling technologies, with applications in machine intelligence, reconfigurable RF systems and hardware security. He has received a DARPA Young Faculty Award (YFA), an NSF CAREER Award, and the Barbara H. and Joseph I. Goldstein Outstanding Junior Faculty Award.

AVAILABILITY:

Available for Licensing and/or Sponsored Research

DOCKET:

UMA 15-049

PATENT STATUS:

Patent Pending

NON-CONFIDENTIAL INVENTION DISCLOSURE

LEAD INVENTOR:

Qiangfei Xia, Ph.D.

CONTACT:

2-dimensional (2D) materials are characterized as being one or two atoms thick. Graphene (image above) is by far the best known 2D material. However, there are many other 2D materials with attractive properties (e.g. hexagonal boron nitrides (hBN), transition metal dichalcogenides, etc.). Due to their superior physical properties, graphene and related 2D materials have the potential to revolutionize many industries, enable development of new devices, and provide new functionalities to existing technologies. In short, these materials have the potential to be disruptive and pervasive. Despite their overwhelming promise, however, industrial scale manufacture of these materials is not yet a reality, due in part to an inability to control layer number and to print over large surface areas.

To address this problem, scientists at UMass Amherst have engineered a high-precision printing method that is compatible with current industrial manufacturing processes. This simple method allows single layer 2D material to be patterned, transferred and printed onto a substrate, enabling the fabrication of novel 2D heterostructure devices. Thus, this method will facilitate the assembly of novel devices and enable large-scale manufacture of devices with designed properties.