AUSTIN, TX /Marketwire/ -- Applied Nanotech Holdings Inc. announced that its subsidiary Applied Nanotech Inc. (ANI) established a strategic development program with Optomec Inc. a global leader in the emerging field of printed electronics for solar, display, electronic packaging, and flexible electronics applications.
As a part of the commitment, ANI will install a dedicated Optomec M3D Aerosol Jet printer at its facilities to adapt its revolutionary copper ink to Optomec's patented ultra-high-resolution printing technology. By using ANI's copper ink, the Optomec printer will offer the solar, display, flexible circuit, and PCB manufacturers contact-free deposition of high-quality, low-cost metal lines.
The Optomec printing solution is able to produce much finer lines than is currently possible with traditional screen printing and inkjet printing equipment. The combined ANI/Optomec copper ink-printing solution will provide an alternative to silver inks, facilitating lower cost, coupled with the promise of higher reliability. Furthermore, ANI's copper inks do not require expensive vacuum installation or inert gas environment, lowering the cost of the capital for manufacturing equipment.
David Ramahi, President and CEO of Optomec, stated, "We are very pleased that ANI has committed to optimize its copper for use with our M3D Aerosol Jet printing technology. Our customers have a rapidly growing appetite for Aerosol Jet proven materials, as they deploy their systems in production applications for solar cells, displays, and printed electronics manufacturing. ANI's copper ink offers significant cost benefits to our mutual customers, and we look forward to facilitating its adoption as an Aerosol Jet standard for next-generation electronic products."
Dr. Yaniv, President and CEO of Applied Nanotech, stated, "Today the metallic conductive ink technology is based on expensive silver inks. The electronic printing industry is actively looking to replace silver inks with copper inks that can be deposited at low temperature in air. These proprietary copper inks, based on copper nanoparticles, are available today at Applied Nanotech, and the collaboration with Optomec will provide an excellent total solution to the flexible electronics industry needs."
About Applied Nanotech
Applied Nanotech Holdings Inc. is a holding company consisting of two wholly owned operating subsidiaries. Applied Nanotech Inc. is a premier research and commercialization organization dedicated to developing applications for nanotechnology, with an extremely strong position in the fields of electron-emission applications from carbon film/nanotubes, sensors, functionalized nanomaterials, and nanoelectronics. Electronic Billboard Technology Inc. possesses technology related to electronic digitized sign technology. The companies have over 250 patents or patents pending. Applied Nanotech Holdings' business model is to license its technology to partners that will manufacture and distribute products using the technology.
About Optomec
Optomec Inc. is a world-leading provider of additive manufacturing systems for high-performance applications in the electronics, photovoltaics, life sciences, and aerospace markets. Optomec's M3D Aerosol Jet Deposition System is a breakthrough printable-electronics solution that produces much finer feature sizes than traditional screen printing and ink-jetting processes. The M3D system uses an innovative aerodynamic-focusing technology that prints electronic and physical structures with feature sizes down to 5 microns. Optomec has more than 50 M3D customers in 10 countries, as its sales of M3D products to industry have been doubling each year.