Crystals (May 2020)

Printing ZnO Inks: From Principles to Devices

  • Giuseppe Arrabito,
  • Yana Aleeva,
  • Riccardo Pezzilli,
  • Vittorio Ferrara,
  • Pier Gianni Medaglia,
  • Bruno Pignataro,
  • Giuseppe Prestopino

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst10060449
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 10, no. 6
p. 449

Abstract

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Solution-based printing approaches permit digital designs to be converted into physical objects by depositing materials in a layer-by-layer additive fashion from microscale to nanoscale resolution. The extraordinary adaptability of this technology to different inks and substrates has received substantial interest in the recent literature. In such a context, this review specifically focuses on the realization of inks for the deposition of ZnO, a well-known wide bandgap semiconductor inorganic material showing an impressive number of applications in electronic, optoelectronic, and piezoelectric devices. Herein, we present an updated review of the latest advancements on the ink formulations and printing techniques for ZnO-based nanocrystalline inks, as well as of the major applications which have been demonstrated. The most relevant ink-processing conditions so far explored will be correlated with the resulting film morphologies, showing the possibility to tune the ZnO ink composition to achieve facile, versatile, and scalable fabrication of devices of different natures.

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