Abstract
Feasibility on the application of discontinuous carbon fiber reinforced polymers to microscale structures was studied on the basis of classical theories and some experiments. In addition, fabrication of micro-parts with the discontinuous carbon fiber reinforced polymers was tried using the photopolymerization process. The theoretical prediction suggested the feasiblity on the application of discontinuous carbon fiber reinforced polymers to microscale structures. The experimental results showed that the elastic modulus, fracture toughness and dimensional stability could be largely improved by the reinforcement with discontinuous carbon fibers, though the tensile strength could not be improved in case of the material system used in the present work. The fabrication of a micro-gear of a dicontinuous carbon fiber reinforced polymer did not succeed completely owing to the limitation of the current system.
