Development of micro-stereolithography technology using metal powder

Micro-stereolithography is a new technology that can be used to fabricate free-form 3D microstructures by dividing a desired shape into many slices of a given horizontal thickness, hardening each slice with a focused laser beam, and then stacking them together. However, a method of providing electrical conductivity in the final product has not yet been developed. Therefore, this study developed a new suspension consisting of a photopolymer and metal powder mix, to which dispersant was added to obtain laser light scattering and stabilizing effects. A layer-recoating device was also developed to flatten the highly viscous mixed suspension. 3D microstructures were then manufactured using the recoating and micro-stereolithography systems. The fabricated products were sintered to obtain the desired electrical conductivity. This new process for fabricating electrically conductive metal microstructures is expected to broaden the range of applications for micro-stereolithography technology. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.