Inkjet-printed lasing silk text on reusable distributed feedback boards

Inkjet printing is an attractive bottom-up microfabrication technology owing to its simplicity, ease of use, and low cost. This method is particularly suitable for patterning of biomaterials because biofunctionality and bioactivity can be preserved during the patterning process in the absence of harsh conditions such as heat, UV radiation, and plasma. However, it is still challenging to apply this technology to biomaterial-based soft photonics, which requires precise control over morphology and uniformity to confine photons efficiently. This study introduces inkjet printing to create silk protein patterns to emit/guide a single-mode distributed feedback (DFB) laser on a single platform. A thin TiO2 coated grating enables coherent feedback of the generated photons for any shape of the printed silk pattern. The lasing wavelength can be adjusted by adding gold nanoparticles to the silk/dye ink. Photonic components of lasers and waveguides are drawn on a DFB board, and the lasing light can be extracted through adjacent waveguides. The printed components can be reformed by post modification (water-removal and reprinting). Additionally, optically absorptive melanin nanoparticles placed on the waveguide can attenuate the propagating light, thus adding utility for sensing applications. This allows a new method to fabricate cost-effective, easily functionalized, and versatile biomaterial photonic chips for advanced sensing and diagnosis.