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MIT engineers 3D print the electromagnets at the heart of many electronics. The printed solenoids could enable electronics that cost less and are easier to manufacture — on Earth or in space.

MIT researchers modified a multimaterial 3D printer to produce three-dimensional solenoids in one step. The devices could generate about three times more magnetic field than other 3D-printed solenoids, and could help lower the cost of electronics.

This could not only reduce costs and eliminate manufacturing waste, but since this machine could be produced outside a factory, people with limited resources or those who live in remote areas may be able to access this medical device more easily. For example, instead of shipping replacement electronic parts to a base on Mars, which could take years and cost millions of dollars, one could send a signal containing files for the 3D printer, says Luis Fernando Velásquez-García, a principal research scientist in MIT’s Microsystems Technology Laboratories (MTL). Integrating solenoids onto electrical circuits manufactured in a clean room poses significant challenges, as they have very different form factors and are made using incompatible processes that require post assembly.

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