Two-photon 3D printing technology is a cutting-edge technology that can print various structures on the nanometer scale. The two-photon technology reported previously uses resin materials such as photoresist. No results have been achieved with regard to metallic materials.
If two-photon technology can be used to print metal, then there will be new applications. On April 18, 2019, Antarctic Bear learned from foreign media that scientists at the Fraunhofer Institute of Microengineering and Microsystems (IMM) in Germany are developing a new process that uses multiphoton lithography to print parts on metals Generate nano-scale structures on.
As part of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) -funded project "LAMETA", the IMM team aims to make parts smaller than those produced using the Direct Energy Deposition (DED) process.
"In many technological applications, microstructures with nanoscale dimensions are becoming increasingly important," said Dr. Thomas Klotz Books and the LAMETA project manager at Fraunhofer IMM.
"If we extend the structure to the third dimension and reduce the size of the structure to the width of the light, then new and interesting phenomena can be solved."
Multiphoton Lithography and Direct Energy Deposition
According to Fraunhofer IMM researchers, in order to scale down to nanometer resolution, two-photon absorption and commercially available metal precursors must be used. Two-photon absorption occurs within a transparent material of the laser wavelength used during the multi-photon lithography method.
Instead, DED uses an electron beam or high-power laser beam projector to melt the wires to build a 3D structure. This process is performed in a sealed chamber filled with an inert gas to control material properties. Scientists believe that parts created using DED primarily maintain resolution in the micrometer range.
Therefore, there is a need for a new multi-photon lithography process for additive manufacturing on metal substrates, so as to be able to produce unlimited 3D printed nanostructures. This requires new optical components, as well as novel sensor elements.
In the proposed laser-based process, scientists will be able to control light to selectively manipulate its interaction with radiant light and electrons in nanoscale metal frames. A new class of materials is also being developed for this process.
"We want to show the specific application potential of this method, thus opening up new application areas in the field of plasma science," Books added. The project is expected to be completed in 2020.