The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council has awarded £1.6m to the Advanced Technology Institute (ATI) and the 5G Innovation Centre at the University of Surrey to establish a hub that will enable the manufacturing of smart materials and self-powered electronics.
Professor Ravi Silva, pictured, director of the ATI and of the nano-manufacturing hub, said: “This is an exciting project for the University of Surrey and our partners. We will develop new technologies and techniques that will allow us to make the dream of a fully wireless smart home or smart factory commonplace in the UK.”
Some of the funding will be used to purchase a NanoOPS printer, designed by Northeastern University. This will provide the ability to produce plastic nanoscale electronics suitable for devices such as wearable sensors, electronic tags, and various wireless technologies.
According to the hub, the NanoOPS printer will help to reduce the cost of manufacturing plastic electronics by a factor of ten.