Future technological innovations in areas such as the Internet of things and wearable electronics require cheap, easily deformable and reasonably performing printed electronic circuitries. However, current state-of-the-art (SoA) printed electronic devices show mobilities of ~10 cm2/Vs, about ×100 lower than traditional Si-electronics. A promising solution to print devices from 2D semiconducting nanosheets gives relatively low mobilities (~0.1 cm2/Vs) due to the rate-limiting nature of charge transfer (CT) across inter-nanosheet junctions. By minimising the junction resistance RJ, the mobility of printed devices could match that of individual nanosheets, i.e. up to 1000 cm2/Vs for phosphorene, competing with Si. HYPERSONIC is a high-risk, high-gain interdisciplinary project exploiting new chemical and physical approaches to minimise RJ in printed nanosheet networks, leading to ultra-cheap printed devices with a performance ×10–100 beyond the SoA. The chemical approach relies on chemical crosslinking of nanosheets with (semi)conducting molecules to boost inter-nanosheet CT. The physical approach involves synthesising high-aspect-ratio nanosheets, leading to low bending rigidity and increased inter-nanosheet interactions, yielding conformal, large-area junctions of >104 nm2 to dramatically reduce RJ. Our radical new technology will use a range of n- or p-type nanosheets to achieve printed networks with mobilities of 100s of cm2/Vs. A comprehensive electrical characterisation of all nanosheet networks will allow us to not only identify those with ultra-high mobility but also to fully control the relation between basic physics/chemistry and network mobility. We will demonstrate the utility of our technology by using our best-performing networks as complementary field-effect devices in next-generation, integrated, wearable sensor arrays. Printed digital and analog circuits will read and amplify sensor signals, demonstrating a potential commercialisable application.
