Advances in Printing and Electronics: From Engagement to Commitment

In recent years, printed electronics reached enormous popularity as a result of their huge potential to offer unique features that are not attainable through traditional fabrication, namely low-cost production, multifunctionality, stretchability, sustainability, and flexibility. Being expected a galloping increase in the use of printed technologies in the near future, due to the digitalization efforts associated with the Internet of Things and the 4.0 revolution, it is timely and desirable to discuss the joint features, the interrelations, the complementarities, the interdependency, and the most demanding challenges linked to the relation between printed technologies and electronic materials. In this context, this study offers a broad review of the numerous printing technologies used in the processing of electronics, commonly used substrates, the most effective printed electronic materials, and the key post-printing treatments such as sintering. Disruptive challenges in various printing techniques, (un)expected future research directions of printed electronics, and imminent application trends are also highlighted, following a critical and subjective perspective.