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Micro-stereolithography photopolymer solidification patterns for various laser beam exposure conditions

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Abstract

Micro-stereolithography is a novel micro-manufacturing process that fabricates 3D microstructures by solidifying the photopolymer using a UV laser in a layer-by-layer fashion. In this paper, variation in the photopolymer solidification pattern due to the scanning pattern and pitch of a focused laser beam was investigated experimentally. Also, experiments were conducted to determine the effects of the layer thickness on the solidification width and depth in multi-layer solidification. The experimental results were compared to numerical simulations. The results showed that a zigzag-shaped scanning pattern was faster and more stable than a crank-shaped pattern. It was also determined that the scanning pitch should be selected according to solidification depth and width for a given scanning pattern, and that the layer thickness has little effect on the solidification depth. Based on the results, several microstructures were successfully fabricated, such as a micro-tube with a helical separation wall and a microlink.

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Abbreviations

P L :

The power of the laser beam

λ :

The wavelength of the laser beam

f :

The focal length of the focusing lens

z :

The depth from the surface of photopolymer

V S :

The scanning feed of the laser beam

W 0(z):

The Gaussian half-width of the focused laser beam at a given depth z

E C :

The critical exposure of the photopolymer

D P :

The penetration depth of the photopolymer

W 0 min :

The Gaussian half-width at the focal point

R :

The Gaussian half-width of the laser beam that passes into the focusing lens

w :

The scanning width of the laser beam

L :

The solidified width of the photopolymer

h :

The solidified depth of the photopolymer

D 1 :

The layer thickness

D 2 :

The total solidified depth in a multi-layer solidification

References

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Acknowledgements

This research was supported by the Intelligent Microsystem Centre (IMC; http://www.microsystem.re.kr), which performs one of the 21st Century's Frontier R&D projects; this research was also sponsored by the Korean Ministry of Science and Technology, under the contract project code MS-01-321-01, and sponsored by the Next-Generation New Technology Development Project of the Ministry Of Commerce, Industry and Energy of Korea.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Pohang University of Science and Technology, San 31 Hyoja-dong, Nam-gu, 790-784, Pohang, Kyungbuk, S. Korea

    In Hwan Lee & Dong-Woo Cho

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  1. In Hwan Lee
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  2. Dong-Woo Cho
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Correspondence to Dong-Woo Cho.

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Lee, I.H., Cho, DW. Micro-stereolithography photopolymer solidification patterns for various laser beam exposure conditions. Int J Adv Manuf Technol 22, 410–416 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00170-003-1538-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00170-003-1538-9

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