Flexible electronic circuits including shape memory materials

• US 10,164,308 B2
• Filed: 05/17/2018
• Issued: 12/25/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 12/02/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Doyle, Matthew S., Judd, Jeffrey N., Kuczynski, Joseph, Strand, Scott D., Tofil, Timothy J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Takaoka, Dean
• Application Number:
  US15/982,271
• Publication Number:
  US 20180269551A1
• Time in Patent Office: 222 Days
• Field of Search: 148563, 333238
• CPC Class Codes: F03G 7/06 using expansion or contraction of bodies due to heating, cooling, moistening, drying or the like using thermal expansion of non-vaporising liquids F01K
• CPC Class Codes: F03G 7/0612 using polymers
• CPC Class Codes: F03G 7/0614 using shape memory elements
• CPC Class Codes: F03G 7/065 using a shape memory element
• CPC Class Codes: H01P 1/06 Movable joints, e.g. rotating joints
• CPC Class Codes: H01P 1/127 Strip line switches
• CPC Class Codes: H01P 3/085 Triplate lines

Abstract

A flexible electronic circuit includes a shape memory material disposed within a flexible dielectric material.

Claims

1. A flexible electronic circuit having an embedded signal trace with a dynamic impedance value, the flexible electronic circuit comprising:

a first dielectric structure that includes;

a first ground layer overlying a first flexible dielectric layer, the first ground layer defining a ground plane; and

an embedded signal trace adjacent to the first flexible dielectric layer, the embedded signal trace defining a signal plane; and

a second dielectric structure overlying a second ground layer, the second dielectric structure including;

a dielectric material adjacent to the embedded signal trace; and

a second flexible dielectric layer separated from the dielectric material by a mechanical member, the second flexible dielectric layer having a shape memory alloy (SMA) material embedded therein,

wherein application of heat results in a change in the SMA material from a deformed state to a non-deformed state, the change resulting in movement of the signal plane with respect to the ground plane in order to vary an impedance value of the embedded signal trace.

2. The flexible electronic circuit of claim 1, wherein the SMA material has a diaphragm shape.

3. The flexible electronic circuit of claim 1, wherein the SMA material has a cylindrical shape.

4. The flexible electronic circuit of claim 1, wherein the first flexible dielectric layer is formed from a flexible adhesive bonding material.

5. The flexible electronic circuit of claim 4, wherein the flexible adhesive bonding material includes an acrylic adhesive.

6. The flexible electronic circuit of claim 1, wherein the first flexible dielectric layer is formed from an ion gel dielectric material.

7. The flexible electronic circuit of claim 1, wherein the SMA material corresponds to a copper-aluminum-nickel shape-memory alloy or a nickel-titanium (NiTi) shape-memory alloy.

8. A flexible electronic circuit having an embedded signal trace with a dynamic impedance value, the flexible electronic circuit comprising:

a first dielectric structure that includes;

a first ground layer overlying a first dielectric layer; and

an embedded signal trace adjacent to the first dielectric layer, the embedded signal trace defining a signal plane; and

a second dielectric structure overlying a second ground layer that defines a ground plane, the second dielectric structure including;

a second dielectric layer adjacent to the embedded signal trace; and

a flexible dielectric layer separated from the second dielectric layer by a mechanical member, the flexible dielectric layer having a shape memory alloy (SMA) material embedded therein,

wherein application of heat results in a change in the SMA material from a deformed state to a non-deformed state, the change resulting in movement of the ground plane with respect to the signal plane in order to vary an impedance value of the embedded signal trace.

9. The flexible electronic circuit of claim 8, wherein the SMA material has a diaphragm shape.

10. The flexible electronic circuit of claim 8, wherein the SMA material has a cylindrical shape.

11. The flexible electronic circuit of claim 8, wherein the flexible dielectric layer is formed from a flexible adhesive bonding material.

12. The flexible electronic circuit of claim 11, wherein the flexible adhesive bonding material includes an acrylic adhesive.

13. The flexible electronic circuit of claim 8, wherein the flexible dielectric layer is formed from an ion gel dielectric material.

14. The flexible electronic circuit of claim 8, wherein the SMA material corresponds to a copper-aluminum-nickel shape-memory alloy or a nickel-titanium (NiTi) shape-memory alloy.