PAM JAM ARCHIVE2026 |
April 13, 2026
Max Saccone, University of Colorado Boulder [email]
"PHOTOPOLYMER-BASED ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING OF METALS, CERAMICS, AND CARBON MATERIALS"
Summary: Max Saccone walked through various approaches for using printed polymer scaffolds as templates to synthesize inorganic materials — comparing heterogeneous powder-based resins, homogeneous single-phase resins, and liquid-liquid emulsion systems, and explaining the tradeoffs of each. Max then presented his lab's approach of infusing precursors into already-printed scaffolds after the fact, demonstrating this with metals, metal alloys, and carbon materials derived from polyacrylonitrile, showing results at the microscale with promising structural and compositional outcomes. The talk highlighted key remaining challenges, including process sensitivity, shrinkage during pyrolysis, and the difficulty of reliably polymerizing volatile monomers like acrylonitrile inside a printed scaffold without losing material.
March 9, 2026
Johanna Schwartz, Lawrence Livermore National Lab [email]
“ONGOING EFFORTS IN VOLUMETRIC ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING AND COMPOSITE PRINTING USING MICROWAVES”
Summary: Johanna Schwartz presents her team's pioneering work on microwave-based volumetric additive manufacturing (VAM) — a 3D printing technique that cures entire objects at once rather than layer by layer. Unlike traditional light-based VAM, which is limited to transparent resins, her approach uses microwave irradiation to print with opaque, particle-loaded, and composite materials, opening the door to ceramics, carbon fiber composites, and beyond. Join her for a candid look at building a novel technology from the ground up, complete with early breakthroughs, ongoing challenges, and exciting future directions.
* Summaries generated by AI