Microchip Assembly Printer

Current microassembly approaches have many limitations. Robotic pick and place tools have low throughput and cannot handle small chiplets. Transfer processes such as with rubber stamps are not programmable, cannot sort, and do not scale to continuous processes or heterogeneous applications. Laser release processes do not orient chiplets and have throughputs limited by slow mechanical scanning. We are using programmable directed electrostatic assembly to address these limitations by engineering dynamic electrostatic fields to manipulate small objects in parallel. We are developing the capability to rapidly sort, place, orient micro chiplets into custom positions and transfer them to a final substrate, similar to how laser printers assemble toner particles onto paper. Such a process could enable significantly more heterogeneity, complexity, and customizability in chiplet assembly for applications in sensor arrays, microLEDs, optoelectronics, and electronics. The process starts with micro-objects in solution and uses directed electrostatic assembly to controllably transport objects with open and closed loop control. Active matrix addressable two-dimensional arrays of electrostatic actuators are used to manipulate the force patterns which move the micro-objects. After assembly, we transfer the assemblies with either stamp or continuous roll-to-roll methods to final substrates and interconnect.