Development of Rapid Mask Fabrication Technology for Micro-Abrasive Machining

Micro-abrasive jet machining (mu-AJM) has become a useful technique for micro-machining of a brittle material such as glass, silicon, etc. This technology is mainly based on the erosion of a mask which protects substrate against high velocity of micro-particles. Generally, for the fabrication of a mask in the mu-AJM process, a photomask based on the semi-conductor fabrication process was used. In this research, a rapid mask fabrication technology based on micro-stereolithography technology has been developed for the mu-AJM. By scanning the focused UV laser beam, a micro-mask pattern was fabricated directly without photolithography process and photomask. Si wafer were abrasive-jet machined using fabricated mask patterns.