Self-Healing Interconnects for Hybrid Flexible Electronics

Hybrid flexible electronic systems promise high-performance user interfaces and smart surfaces. Despite progress in materials and manufacturing, the reliability of the interconnect due to open-circuit faults caused by mechanical, electrical, and environmental stress remains a concern. Here, we discuss an electric field-assisted self-healing (eFASH) technique that permits a real-time repair of open faults. The active material is a dispersion of conductive particles in an insulating fluid that is contained over the interconnect. Healing is triggered by the electric field that appears in the open gap during the occurrence of the fault. The technology is scalable and can be applied to the various feature sizes observed in hybrid flexible electronic systems. In this work, we describe the physics and characterize the healing mechanism for various operating conditions and finally demonstrate self-healing integrated circuits.