| This thesis describes a new method of rapid manufacturing complex printed circuit boards (PCB) using aerosol jet deposition of both conductors and insulators. A process for the rapid manufacturing of complex multilayer circuit boards, specifically a transceiver circuit, with commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) integration is demonstrated leveraging the aerosol jet printing system. This research provides a method for making a system-on-a-chip circuit on a variety of substrates with novel integration methods while minimizing spatial and geometric interference to the broader device. A unique manufacturing process was developed for non-embedded components which involves the building up of the circuit around the system's microprocessor. This technique, in conjunction with board redesign, could be employed to eliminate the need for conductive epoxy attachment of COTS components. The transceiver circuit and its microprocessor, based off a commercially available circuit, were successfully programmed and the program executes. The radio frequency (RF) matching network proved more challenging to produce. Dielectric thickness consistency appears to be a primary issue in the implementation of the RF network.;To the best of the researchers' knowledge, this research is novel in that it is the multilayer circuit with the most functional capability that has been built using aerosol jet printing technology. The fabrication process for the board, including component placement, has been streamlined to take approximately 10-12 hours. Improvement of board fabrication yield, currently around 25%, is under investigation. Multiple possible strategies are available to improve yield. In this work, we demonstrate a proof of concept functional prototype. The work was extended to the evaluation of long-term reliability and applicability to other non-planar geometries including a MEMS acoustic array. |
