This paper reports
on the nanofabrication of a fiber-reinforced
polymer nanocomposite (FRPN) by two-photon direct laser writing (TP-DLW)
using silica nanowires (SiO
2
NWs) as nanofillers, since
they feature a refractive index very close to that of the photoresist
used as a polymeric matrix. This allows for the best resolution offered
by the TP-DLW technique, even with high loads of SiO
2
NWs,
up to 70 wt %. The FRPN presented an increase of approximately 4 times
in Young’s modulus (8.23 GPa) and nanohardness (120 MPa) when
compared to those of the bare photoresist, indicating how the proposed
technique is well-suited for applications with higher structural requirements.
Moreover, three different printing configurations can be implemented
thanks to the use of silicon chips, on which the SiO
2
NWs
are grown, as fabrication substrates. First, they can be effectively
used as an adhesive layer when the laser beam is focused at the interface
with the silicon substrate. Second, they can be used as a sacrificial
layer, when the laser beam is focused in a plane inside the SiO
2
NW layer. Third, only the outer shell of the object is printed
so that the SiO
2
NW tangle acts as the internal skeleton
for the structure being fabricated in the so-called shell and scaffold
printing strategy.