Liquid Metal Jetting for Printing Metal Parts

Liquid Metal Jetting (LMJ) is solid freeform fabrication process for producing metal mechanical parts and electronic interconnects. It is a technology similar to ink jet printing where individual molten droplets are accurately printed. LMJ will produce metal parts on demand from a CAD database with functional performance parameters similar to metal parts produced by machining or casting. By controlling solidification rates and metal alloy composition, LMJ is able to produce parts with unique properties such as metal matrices and functionally graded materials. This paper will review the current status of LMJ and future applications for this technology.