B. LASER-LIGA Micro System Engineering
Materials suitable for laser drilling include polyimide
and other polymers. |
 |
| Micro
Metal Mesh / Nozzle Plate for
Micro Sprayers / Atomizers |
|
 |
| Micro
Needle Array for
Biomedical Applications |
|
 |
| 3D
Structure for Inkjet Nozzle Plate |
|
| |
 |
| Microfluidic
Channels |
|
 |
| Ni
Alloy Mesh / Nozzle Plate with
Gold Plating
|
|
|
| |
| LIGA technology
that uses X-ray as lithography light source is a prohibitedly
costly process. While ablation by excimer laser radiation
can be successfullly used for microstructuring, the costs
of production are still rather high due to the fact that
laser processing is a serial process with low throughput.
Cost reduction is possible by combining excimer laser
micromachining with a replication process such as injection
molding or hot embossing. This so-called 'Laser-LIGA'
process is a variant of the LIGA technique using ablation
of polymers and photoresists by UV excimer lasers as the
structure-defining /patterning process step. Compared
to deep x-ray lithography the surface quality of microstructures
made by laser ablation is slightly poorer and the maximum
aspect ratios (up to 10) are considerably lower too. However,
Laser-LIGA offers more flexibility at much lower cost
compared to x-ray LIGA or excimer laser machining processes.
Almost any geometry can be realized, in many cases without
a mask by direct structuring. Once the structures are
defined, micro molds are fabricated by electroformed for
injection molding, casting or embossing applications.
This process is therefore suited to rapid prototyping
as well as for large scale production of micro- scale
devices such as micro lenses, microfluidic systems, micro-optical
devices and bio/medical components. |
| |
|
