Liquid Metal Printed Superconducting Circuits

TL;DR

This paper introduces a novel liquid metal printing method for rapid, cost-effective fabrication of superconducting circuits that operate at cryogenic temperatures, using gallium-based alloys and composite inks.

Contribution

It presents the first conceptual demonstration of room-temperature liquid metal printing for superconducting electronics, enabling quick and adaptable device fabrication.

Findings

Gallium-based liquid alloy inks can achieve superconductivity around 6.4K.

The method allows for straightforward patterning of superconducting circuits.

The fabrication process is cost-effective and adaptable for end-user applications.

Abstract

Since the discovery of superconductor one hundred years ago, tremendous theoretical and technological progresses have been achieved. The zero resistance and complete diamagnetism of superconducting materials promise many possibilities in diverse fields. However, the complexity and expensive manufacturing costs associated with the time-consuming superconductor fabrication process may retard their practices in a large extent. Here, via liquid metal printing we proposed to quickly fabricate superconducting electronics which can work at the prescribed cryogenic temperatures. By way of the room temperature fluidity of liquid metal composite inks, such one-step printing allows to pattern various superconducting circuits on the desired substrate. As the first-ever conceptual trial, the most easily available gallium-based liquid alloy inks were particularly adopted to composite with copper particles to achieve superconductivity under specific temperatures around 6.4K. Further, a series of liquid metal alloy and particles loaded composites were screened out and comparatively interpreted regarding their superconducting properties and potential values as printable inks in fabricating superconducting devices. The cost-effective feature and straightforward adaptability of the fabrication principle were evaluated. This work suggests an easy-going way for fabricating ending user superconducting devices, which may warrant more promising investigations and practices in the coming time.