Printed microscale inorganic light emitting diodes on flexible substrates for display, biomedical, and robotic applications

Flexible electronics can offer various advantages such as intimate, conformal contacts to curvilinear surfaces and a high level of tolerance to an external strain over the conventional devices integrated on rigid platforms. With suitable choices of materials, design, and integrating strategies, inorganic semiconductor materials can be utilized as active components, integrated with flexible platforms. The deterministic transfer printing technique can generate this outcome where the single-crystalline semiconductor active components retain its original properties, thereby offering flexible electronic system with higher performance compared to organic materials based counterparts. In this dissertation, inorganic III-IV materials were explored to realize the high performance inorganic light emitting diodes (LEDs) on flexible substrate, ranging from bendable, to foldable, and to stretchable formats. In particular, advanced methods in materials growth, processing, mechanics, thermal design, and system manufacturing combine to enable unusual modes of use for inorganic LEDs. Using the type of LED systems, various applications for bio medicine and robotics such as photo-activation of drugs, in situ spectroscopy, or even optical ablation are possible, in minimally invasive modes. Overall, the outcomes have the potential to lead to applications that can complement new emerging areas as well as those already well addressed by conventional forms of inorganic LEDs or organic LEDs.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ph.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Materials Science & Engr

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2012

Author dc:creator

• Kim, Rak Hwan

Contributors dc:contributor

• Rogers, John A.
• Braun, Paul V.
• Li, Xiuling
• Dillon, Shen J.

• flexible electronics
• stretchable systems
• optoelectronics
• microscale light emitting diodes
• graphene interconnects
• wireless operation

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright 2012 Rak Hwan Kim

Language dc:language

en

Handle dc:identifier

http://hdl.handle.net/2142/34452

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/34452