Mechanical etching of micro pockets by powder blasting

Abstract

The main objective of this research is to develop a mechanical etching technique to produce micro mould dies having micro pockets of hundreds of µm. A powder blasting technique is applied to stainless steel plates based on predefined process conditions. This paper describes the performance of a powder blasting technique and the effect of the number of nozzle scanning times and the stand-off distance of the nozzle on the depth and width of pockets. Required blasting and measurement steps are performed to extract the relationships between given process parameters and machined results. Experimental results show that increasing the number of nozzle scanning times and decreasing the stand-off distance of the nozzle increase the depth and width of machined pockets. Increase of the width of the pockets results from mask film wear. The results of this research can be a fundamental basis to produce more accurate and smaller micro pockets using the powder blasting process.

Implementation of a shadow mask for direct writing in abrasive jet micro-machining

“…For example, Belloy et al (2002) fabricated glass inertial sensors, Schlautmann et al (2001) electrophoresis capillaries, Park et al (2005) micro-molds in steel, and Yamahata et al (2005) ball valve micro pumps in glass. Masaki et al (2005) added a circular vane to slot nozzles in order to achieve a more uniform particle velocity distribution in order to machine large areas.…”

An analytical model of the effect of particle size distribution on the surface profile evolution in abrasive jet micromachining

“…Research has recently been performed to adapt AJM for use in mass production. For example, Sugimoto et al (2006) have developed unique nozzles to machine large areas, and Park et al (2005) have manufactured micro-moulds using AJM which could then be used for mass production of components. AJM has also been recently used to machine micro-fluidic channels (Schelautmann et al, 2001), glass inertial sensors (Belloy et al, 2002a), and several MEMS devices (Yamahata et al, 2005;Ballandras et al, 2001;Belloy et al, 2002b;Solignac et al, 2001).…”

Abrasive jet micro-machining of planar areas and transitional slopes in glass using target oscillation

“…AJM has been used to fabricate several devices. For instance, Belloy et al (2002) fabricated glass inertial sensors using AJM; Schelautmann et al (2001) used powder blasting technology as an alternate tool for the microfabrication of electrophoresis capillaries; Park et al (2005) machined micro-molds in steel; and Yamahata et al (2005) fabricated a ball valve micropump in glass using AJM.…”