Analytical transient phase change heat transfer model of wearable electronics with a thermal protection substrate

As thermal protection substrates for wearable electronics, functional soft composites made of polymer materials embedded with phase change materials and metal layers demonstrate unique capabilities for the thermal protection of human skin. Here, we develop an analytical transient phase change heat transfer model to investigate the thermal performance of a wearable electronic device with a thermal protection substrate. The model is validated by experiments and the finite element analysis (FEA). The effects of the substrate structure size and heat source power input on the temperature management efficiency are investigated systematically and comprehensively. The results show that the objective of thermal management for wearable electronics is achieved by the following thermal protection mechanism. The metal thin film helps to dissipate heat along the in-plane direction by reconfiguring the direction of heat flow, while the phase change material assimilates excessive heat. These results will not only promote the fundamental understanding of the thermal properties of wearable electronics incorporating thermal protection substrates, but also facilitate the rational design of thermal protection substrates for wearable electronics.     

Effects of interfacial properties on the ductility of polymer-supported metal films for flexible electronics

Polymer-supported metal films as interconnects for flexible, large area electronics may rupture when they are stretched, and the rupture strain is strongly dependent upon the film/substrate interfacial properties. This paper investigates the influence of interfacial properties on the ductility of polymer-supported metal films by modeling the microstructure of the metal film as well as the film/substrate interface using the method of finite elements and the cohesive zone model (CZM). The influence of various system parameters including substrate thickness, Young’s modulus of substrate material, film/substrate interfacial stiffness, strength and interfacial fracture energy on the ductility of polymer-supported metal films is systematically studied. Obtained results demonstrate that the ductility of polymer-supported metal films increases as the interfacial strength increases, but the increasing trend is affected distinctly by the interfacial stiffness.     

Deformability of thin metal films on elastomer substrates

Recent applications in flexible electronics require that thin metal films grown on elastomer substrates be deformable. However, how such laminates deform is poorly understood. While a freestanding metal film subject to tension will rupture at a small strain by undergoing a necking instability, we anticipate that a substrate will retard this instability to an extent that depends on the relative stiffness and thickness of the film and the substrate. Using a combination of a bifurcation analysis and finite element simulations, we identify three modes of tensile deformation. On a compliant elastomer, a metal film forms a neck and ruptures at a small strain close to that of a freestanding film. On a stiff elastomer, the metal film deforms uniformly to large strains. On an elastomer of intermediate compliance, the metal film forms multiple necks, deforms much beyond the initial bifurcation, and ruptures at a large strain. Our theoretical predictions call for new experiments.     

BUCKLING ANALYSIS OF ELASTIC FILM BONDED ON SMP SUBSTRATE1)

形状记忆聚合物具有形状变化后在特定条件下可恢复的特点,因此作为一种柔性基底材料在柔性电子中得到广泛应用。对于形状记忆聚合物基底和弹性薄膜组成的双层结构,当 基底收缩时,其表面的弹性薄膜可以形成屈曲波形。针对基底收缩过程中波形的变化, 本文实验测得形状记忆聚合物材料在不同温度下的 属性,结合一维应变恢复函数,利用柔性基底表面薄膜屈曲波形参数(波幅、波长等)表达式,求解得到了在基底收缩的过程中,弹性薄膜屈曲波形的变化规律,和实验结果吻合很好。     

Buckling-induced dislocation emission in thin films on substrates

Atomistic simulations of the evolution of a strained thin film on a substrate has been reported and the formation of dislocations has been observed in the film/substrate interface after the film has buckled. In the framework of the linear elasticity theory, an analytical model has been developed to explain the buckle effect on the formation of the dislocations. A stability diagram with respect to the buckling and dislocation emission phenomena is finally presented for the film as a function of the uniaxial strain and the Burgers vector.     

A Discontinuous Elastic Interface Transfer Model of Thin Film Nanoindentation

A new model of thin film indentation that accounted for an apparent discontinuity in elastic strain transfer at the film/substrate interface was developed. Finite element analysis suggested that numerical values of strain were not directly continuous across the interface; the values in the film were higher when a soft film was deposited on a hard substrate. The new model was constructed based on this discontinuity; whereby, separate weighting factors were applied to account for the influence of the substrate in strain developed in the film and vice-versa. By comparing the model to experimental data from thirteen different amorphous thin film materials on a silicon substrate, constants in each weighting factor were found to have physical significance in being numerically similar to the bulk scale Poisson’s ratios of the materials involved. When employing these material properties in the new model it was found to provide an improved match to the experimental data over the existing Doerner and Nix and Gao models. Finally, the model was found to be capable of assessing the Young’s modulus of thin films that do not exhibit a flat region as long as the bulk Poisson’s ratio is known.     

Micromechanics of substrate-supported thin films

The mechanical properties of metallic thin films deposited on a substrate play a crucial role in the performance of micro/nano-electromechanical systems (MEMS/NEMS) and flexible electronics. This article reviews ongoing study on the mechanics of substrate-supported thin films, with emphasis on the experimental characterization techniques, such as the rule of mixture and X-ray tensile testing. In particular, the determination of interfacial adhesion energy, film deformation, elastic properties and Bauschinger effect are discussed.     

基于气压鼓泡法研究石墨烯力学性能

通常假设二维材料为连续介质薄膜,然后采用连续介质薄膜的研究方法进行二维材料力学性能研究,其中气压鼓泡法是一种主要测试方法．但实验观测发现,悬空石墨烯并非处于气压鼓泡测试分析模型中假设的固支边界条件,而是处于一种粘附边界条件：靠近孔壁边界处,有小部分材料通过范德华吸引粘附在基底柱形孔的侧壁上,而且粘附部分可以在极小载荷作用下剥离．这导致石墨烯悬空部分的实际半径大于基底孔半径,即鼓泡实验中的石墨烯是一种松弛薄膜,而非通常认为的预拉伸薄膜．通过有限元数值模拟研究发现,可基于含有名义松弛应变的鼓泡分析模型获得处于粘附边界条件下的石墨烯弹性模量．     

MECHANICS ANALYSIS OF TWO-DIMENSIONALLY PRESTRAINED ELASTOMERIC THIN FILM FOR STRETCHABLE ELECTRONICS

Various methods have been developed to fabricate highly stretchable electronics. Recent studies show that over 100% two dimensional stretchability can be achieved by mesh structure of brittle functioning devices interconnected with serpentine bridges. Kim et al show that pressing down an inflated elastomeric thin film during transfer printing introduces two di- mensional prestrain, and therefore further improves the system stretchability. This paper gives a theoretical study of this process, through both analytical and numerical approaches. Simple analytical solutions are obtained for meridional and circumferential strains in the thin film, as well as the maximum strain in device islands, which all agree reasonably well with finite element analysis.     

超弹性薄膜与可压缩基底双层结构表面失稳分析

当上层超弹性硬质薄膜和下层可膨胀基底构成的双层结构受压时,薄膜的自由表面可通过形成褶皱降低系统能量.研究表明,上下两层的模量比不同时,上层弹性硬质薄膜将表现出不同的表面失稳模式.本文提出了一种新颖的方法可有效抑制双层软材料的表面失稳,即改变基底材料的泊松比,这种方法同时适用于不具有应变硬化的软材料.首先基于Neo-Hookean模型发展了小变形条件下双层结构表面失稳的理论模型,通过半解析的方法得到了表面失稳的临界应变;然后通过有限元计算与模拟,进一步验证了负泊松比基底可延缓表面失稳.结果表明:(1)当双层结构基底泊松比为正且趋于0.5(不可压缩)时,双层结构在较小的压缩应变下出现表面失稳;(2)当基底的泊松比为负且趋于-1时,可被压缩至46%而不出现表面失稳,即可膨胀基底能有效抑制薄膜的表面失稳.本文发展的方法及主要结果可为延展性电子器件的设计提供指导.     

Third-order polynomial model for analyzing stickup state laminated structure in flexible electronics

Laminated hard-soft integrated structures play a significant role in the fabrication and development of flexible electronics devices. Flexible electronics have advantageous characteristics such as soft and light-weight, can be folded, twisted, flipped inside-out, or be pasted onto other surfaces of arbitrary shapes. In this paper, an analytical model is presented to study the mechanics of laminated hard-soft structures in flexible electronics under a stickup state. Third-order polynomials are used to describe the displacement field, and the principle of virtual work is adopted to derive the governing equations and boundary conditions. The normal strain and the shear stress along the thickness direction in the bi-material region are obtained analytically, which agree well with the results from finite element analysis. The analytical model can be used to analyze stickup state laminated structures, and can serve as a valuable reference for the failure prediction and optimal design of flexible electronics in the future.     

A directed continuum model of micro- and nano-scale thin films

As is well known, classical continuum theories cease to adequately model a material’s behavior as long-range loads or interactions begin to have a greater effect on the overall behavior of the material, i.e., as the material no longer conforms to the locality requirements of classical continuum theories. It is suggested that certain structures to be analyzed in this work, e.g., columnar thin films, are influenced by non-local phenomena. Directed continuum theories, which are often used to capture non-local behavior in the context of a continuum theory, will therefore be used. The analysis in this work begins by establishing the kinematics relationships for a discrete model based on the physical structure of a columnar thin film. The strain energy density of the system is calculated and used to formulate a directed continuum theory, in particular a micromorphic theory, involving deformations of the film substrate and deformations of the columnar structure. The resulting boundary value problem is solved analytically to obtain the deformation of the film in response to applied end displacements.     

Controlled buckling of thin film on elastomeric substrate in large deformation

Electronic systems with large stretchability have many applications. A precisely controlled buckling strategy to increase the stretchability has been demonstrated by combining lithographically patterned surface bonding chemistry and a buckling process. The buckled geometry was assumed to have a sinusoidal form, which may result in errors to determine the strains in the film. A theoretical model is presented in this letter to study the mechanics of this type of thin film/substrate system by discarding the assumption of sinusoidal buckling geometry. It is shown that the previous model overestimates the deflection and curvature in the thin film. The results from the model agree well with finite element simulations and therefore provide design guidelines in many applications ranging from stretchable electronics to micro/nano scale surface patterning and precision metrology.     

Characterization of the fracture work for ductile film undergoing the micro-scratch

The interface adhesion strength (or interface toughness) of a thin film/substrate system is often assessed by the micro-scratch test. For a brittle film material, the interface adhesion strength is easily obtained through measuring the scratch driving forces. However, to measure the interface adhesion strength (or interface toughness) for a metal thin film material (the ductile material) by the micro-scratch test is very difficult, because intense plastic deformation is involved and the problem is a three-dimensional elastic-plastic one. In the present research, using a double-cohesive zone model, the failure characteristics of the thin film/substrate system can be described and further simulated. For a steady-state scratching process, a three-dimensional elastic-plastic finite element method based on the double cohesive zone model is developed and adopted, and the steady-state fracture work of the total system is calculated. The parameter relations between the horizontal driving forces (or energy release rate of the scratching process) and the separation strength of thin film/substrate interface, and the material shear strength, as well as the material parameters are developed. Furthermore, a scratch experiment for the Al/Si film/substrate system is carried out and the failure mechanisms are explored. Finally, the prediction results are applied to a scratch experiment for the Pt/NiO material system given in the literature. The project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (19891180 and 19925211) and Bai Ren Plan of CAS     

基于不同板理论的嵌于柔性层中薄膜的皱曲分析

论文对于柔性层-薄膜-柔性层三层结构系统,基于经典板理论、一阶剪切变形理论和高阶剪切变形理论,分别推导给出薄膜皱曲的控制方程.对于两个柔性层,则把它们处理成具有有限厚度的平面应变弹性体.针对上下柔性层固支边界或自由边界条件,利用线性扰动方法得到柔性层对薄膜的横向压力差,最终获得确定薄膜具有周期性正弦型皱曲的临界载荷方程...     

Adhesion-governed buckling of thin-film electronics on soft tissues

Stretchable/flexible electronics has attracted great interest and attention due to its potentially broad applications in bio-compatible systems. One class of these ultra-thin electronic systems has found promising and important utilities in bio-integrated monitoring and therapeutic devices. These devices can conform to the surfaces of soft bio-tissues such as the epidermis, the epicardium, and the brain to provide portable healthcare functionalities. Upon contractions of the soft tissues, the electronics undergoes compression and buckles into various modes, depending on the stiffness of the tissue and the strength of the interfacial adhesion. These buckling modes result in different kinds of interfacial delamination and shapes of the deformed electronics, which are very important to the proper functioning of the bioelectronic devices. In this paper, detailed buckling mechanics of these thin-film electronics on elastomeric substrates is studied. The analytical results, validated by experiments, provide a very convenient tool for predicting peak strain in the electronics and the intactness of the interface under various conditions.     

用能量法分析层状材料弹性接触问题

利用能量法分析了层状材料（薄膜／基体）弹性接触问题，得到了具有一阶精度的闭合解，给出了求解薄膜弹性模量和泊松比的表达式，并与有限元的数值解进行了比较。二者比较结果表明：在工程材料范围内，理论解与数值解相差在6％以内；同时表明单相材料中剪切模量与弹性模量之间的关系也适用层状材料中的薄膜材料。在数值解的基础上，讨论了薄膜厚度与压头半径的比值对求解精度的影响，发现此比值对精度影响不大。通过对层状材料等效泊松比与等效弹性模量的定义，给出了用压痕实验测定薄膜泊松比与弹性模量的方法。     

Multi-layer thin films/substrate system subjected to non-uniform misfit strains

Current methodologies used for the inference of thin film stress through curvature measurement are strictly restricted to stress and curvature states that are assumed to remain uniform over the entire film/substrate system. These methodologies have recently been extended to a single layer of thin film deposited on a substrate subjected to the non-uniform misfit strain in the thin film. Such methodologies are further extended to multi-layer thin films deposited on a substrate in the present study. Each thin film may have its own non-uniform misfit strain. We derive relations between the stresses in each thin film and the change of system curvatures due to the deposition of each thin film. The interface shear stresses between the adjacent films and between the thin film and the substrate are also obtained from the system curvatures. This provides the basis for the experimental determination of thin film stresses in multi-layer thin films on a substrate.     

Indentation of a hard film on a soft substrate: Strain gradient hardening effects

The strain gradient work hardening is important in micro-indentation of bulk metals and thin metallic films, though the indentation of thin films may display very different behavior from that of bulk metals. We use the conventional theory of mechanism-based strain gradient plasticity (CMSG) to study the indentation of a hard tungsten film on soft aluminum substrate, and find good agreement with experiments. The effect of friction stress (intrinsic lattice resistance), which is important in body-center-cubic tungsten, is accounted for. We also extend CMSG to a finite deformation theory since the indentation depth in experiments can be as large as the film thickness. Contrary to indentation of bulk metals or soft metallic films on hard substrate, the micro-indentation hardness of a hard tungsten film on soft aluminum substrate decreases monotonically with the increasing depth of indentation, and it never approaches a constant (macroscopic hardness). It is also shown that the strain gradient effect in the soft aluminum substrate is insignificant, but that in the hard tungsten thin film is important in shallow indentation. The strain gradient effect in tungsten, however, disappears rapidly as the indentation depth increases because the intrinsic material length in tungsten is rather small.