Fabrication of Conductive Patterns on 3D Printed Structure Using Photo-Polymerization Technology

3D printing technology is attracting considerable attention as it can be used to produce complex-shaped structures quickly. Recently, in addition to the production of simple-shaped parts, the manufacturing of embedded products with conductive patterns using 3D printing has increased. However, previous studies have limitations on conductivity, stability, and process complexity. Therefore, in this paper, a novel manufacturing process is proposed. It uses the same laser energy source of photo-polymerization technology, which is a general 3D printing technology, to create a circuit pattern with high conductivity immediately after the structure is printed. This concept is based on two technologies: a laser direct structuring process and metal photo-polymerization. Moreover, with this technique, it is possible to produce structures and conductive patterns using a single laser-based machine. Therefore, alignment tolerance can be ignored during production. After additional metal deposition, the structure can achieve stable and high conductivity. The pattern produced by this novel manufacturing process has a resistance of 0.5 Ω cm^–1, and the feasibility of the circuit is illustrated with a light-emitting diode demonstration. This method is expected to be helpful for both shape production and the development of products that perform electrical functions.