Inkjet-printed MXene micro-scale devices for integrated broadband ultrafast photonics

MXene, as a novel 2D crystal material, possessing tunable bandgap, low optical attenuation and broadband nonlinear optical responses that may promote the fabrications of advanced electro-photonics devices has gathered remarkable attention recently. However, current investigations of 2D crystals for photonics devices suffer from the limitations of reproducibility, scalability, and compatibility. Inkjet printing is one of the powerful additive manufacturers that facilitate well-controlled, low-cost, scalable and small-footprint electro-photonics devices on myriad substrates. Herein, we directly inkjet printed MXene nanosheets in laser resonators with both fiber and free-space geometrics, and achieved extensive spectral band ultrafast laser operations from near- to the mid-infrared regime with pulse duration going to 100 femtoseconds. The demonstrations of versatile inkjet-printed devices based on MXene, while forthputting its distinct electro-optical properties, may allow the realizations of advanced MXene enable photonics devices shortly.