A Versatile Sacrificial Layer for Transfer Printing of Wide Bandgap Materials for Implantable and Stretchable Bioelectronics

Abstract

Improving and optimizing the processes for transfer printing have the potential to further enhance capabilities in heterogeneous integration of various sensing materials on unconventional substrates for implantable and stretchable electronic devices in biosensing, diagnostics, and therapeutic applications. An advanced transfer printing method based on sacrificial layer engineering for silicon carbide materials in stretchable electronic devices is presented here. In contrast to the typical processes where defined anchor structures are required for the transfer step, the use of a sacrificial layer offers enhances versatility in releasing complex microstructures from rigid donor substrates to flexible receiver platforms. The sacrificial layer also minimizes twisting and wrinkling issues that may occur in free- standing microstructures, thereby facilitating printing onto flat polymer surfaces (e.g., polydimethylsiloxane). The experimental results demonstrate that transferred SiC microstructures exhibit good stretchability, stable electrical properties, excellent biocompatibility, as well as promising sensing- functions associated with a high level of structural perfection, without any cracks or tears. This transfer printing method can be applied to other classes of wide bandgap semiconductors, particularly group III- nitrides and diamond films epitaxially grown on Si substrates, thereby serving as the foundation for the development and possible commercialization of implantable and stretchable bioelectronic devices that exploit wide bandgap materials.Employing a dissolvable film as a supporting layer for the fabrication of free- standing silicon carbide microstructures, the present work eliminates the wrinkling and twisting phenomena associated with nanomembranes grown at high temperatures. This technique enables transfer- printing of diverse microstructures of wide band gap semiconductors onto a soft substrate, creating a new class of stretchable electronics for biosensing and implanting applications.