Multi-Material Additive Manufacturing of Electronic Circuits Combining ARBURG Plastic Freeforming Technology with Molten Metal Printing

Additive manufacturing of electronic circuits offers broad application potential, with a key challenge being the integration of conductive traces in 3D-printed parts. This paper presents a droplet-based hybrid 3D printing method combining ARBURG Plastic Freeforming and StarJet molten metal printing. This new industrial-level 3D printer allows the use of standard design and manufacturing workflows to realize hybrid parts. Demonstrated examples include bulk metal traces printed on high-density polymer substrates, achieving highly conductive, uniform metal lines over a wide droplet spacing range ($\mathbf{7 8} \boldsymbol{\mu} \mathbf{m}$ to $\mathbf{1 8 9} \boldsymbol{\mu} \mathbf{m}$). A fully printed proximity sensing circuit was realized to showcase the potential of hybrid additive manufacturing for electronic devices.