Polymer relief microstructures by inkjet etching

Inkjet etching can create a variety of structures in polymer films, such as (arrays of) holes or grooves. These form by dissolution where a solvent droplet hits the film, followed by droplet evaporation and polymer redeposition at its pinned contact line. The hole radius, R, scales with the total number of droplets printed at a spot, N-dr, as R proportional to ( NdrVdr)(0.34). The width of a groove, D, scales with the total number of drops per unit length N-dr/ L as D proportional to (N-dr/L)(0.56). Theory predicts an exponent of M and K, respectively. Possible applications of inkjet etching are in the field of rapid prototyping. Proof of principle for possible electronic applications is given by creating a patterned Cr/ Au- bilayer. Printing a dispersion creates polymer composite structures with encapsulated nanoparticles, as shown by SFM.