Low-temperature fabrication of fine structures on glass using electrical nanoimprint and chemical etching

Abstract

Periodic structures were imprinted on a soda lime glass surface below its glass transition temperature (T g ) using a carbon-coated SiO 2 mold under application of DC voltage. The structure height increased with the applied DC voltage, although no significant increase with pressure was found. At a temperature around T g , the height reached saturation. Chemical etching using 55% KOH solution at 70 C increased the structure height to eight times the height before etching. Noticeable alternating depression patterns and rapid chemical etching are closely related with the selective decrease in sodium concentration, which occurred only in the surface areas that were pressurized by the mold. V C 2013 AIP Publishing LLC. [http://dx

2D‐structuring of glasses via thermal poling: A short review

“…Later, this was applied to the formation of diffraction gratings in periodically poled glasses via alkaline (KOH) etching, the height of the relief etched in the glass after 12 hours being up to 0.3 lm. 24 It has been recently shown in our experiments 25 that using acidic etching in NH 4 F:8H 2 O polishing etchant during 30 minutes allows formation of the surface relief~0.9 lm in height (see Figure 2). This difference is because alkaline etchant slowly dissolves poled glass regions, the composition and structure of which are close to silica glass 26 and weakly affects the virgin glass, while acidic NH 4 F:8H 2 O etchant preferably and much faster affects the unpoled regions of the glass.…”

“…Historically, the first one was reported by Margulis and Laurell, and it was the difference in chemical etching rate of poled and unpoled regions. Later, this was applied to the formation of diffraction gratings in periodically poled glasses via alkaline (KOH) etching, the height of the relief etched in the glass after 12 hours being up to 0.3 μm . It has been recently shown in our experiments that using acidic etching in NH 4 F:8H 2 O polishing etchant during 30 minutes allows formation of the surface relief ~0.9 μm in height (see Figure ).…”

AC electric field‐induced softening of alkali silicate glasses

“…Finally, from the above observations, the practical uses of both DC‐ and AC‐EFIS can be speculated. If a glass was desired to be structured with enhanced or modified chemical, physical or optical properties at the surface, DC‐EFIS could potentially achieve this modification relative to the parent glass along with a patterned anode at lower furnace temperatures . By comparison, AC‐EFIS would be more beneficial if bulk glass needed to be formed into a shape or structure without a change in chemical composition or structural integrity.…”

Selective Deposition of SiO2 on Ion Conductive Area of Soda-lime Glass Surface

“…The electrical imprint can form fine structures on alkali-containing glasses at lower temperatures than those for thermal nanoimprinting 20 21 . The origin of structure formation is the diffusion of alkali ions in the glass from the anode side to the cathode side, depending on the mold pattern, which is similar to alkali ion behavior that occurs during thermal polling processing 22 23 24 25 .…”