Premium
Direct Ink Writing of Silicon Carbide for Microwave Optics
Author(s) -
Larson Chris M.,
Choi Justin J.,
Gallardo Patricio A.,
Henderson Shawn W.,
Niemack Michael D.,
Rajagopalan Ganesan,
Shepherd Robert F.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
advanced engineering materials
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.938
H-Index - 114
eISSN - 1527-2648
pISSN - 1438-1656
DOI - 10.1002/adem.201500298
Subject(s) - inkwell , silicon carbide , materials science , microwave , colloid , silicon , 3d printing , carbide , optoelectronics , optics , nanotechnology , composite material , chemical engineering , physics , engineering , quantum mechanics
3D silicon carbide structures are patterned via direct ink writing (DIW) of borosiloxane‐colloidal SiC ink blends. These hybrid inks enable printing over a wide range of colloidal volume fractions (0.38 < ɸ < 0.54) to produce relative densities of ≈30–50%. Structural (bars, cylinders, turbines) and functional (periodic lattices, microwave feedhorns) components are printed and sintered with excellent shape stability. The SiC feedhorns transmit microwaves (8.5 GHz) with very low insertion losses (≈0.05 dB) relative to commercial standards, demonstrating their potential in microwave optics applications.