A pagewidth high quality inkjet printhead requires a large number of ink ejection nozzles to be formed. For example, at a high resolution (1600 dpi), a US letter or a letter or A4 size page requires approximately 51,200 nozzles. A smaller printhead, for example, a 4 inch printhead at 1600 dpi will contain approximately 25,600 nozzles. The nozzle count is assuming a four colour (CMYK) printhead.
The formation of such a large number of inkjets on a single printhead gives rise to a complexity problem in the design and layout of such a large complex structure.
It is not readily apparent how to distribute control and power signals to such a large number of nozzles.
Further, when such devices are fabricated utilizing a semi-conductor fabrication and micro-electro mechanical (MEMS) techniques, it is difficult to determine what the mask arrangements for such a complex structure should be.