Manufacturing of Large-area Microstructure Arrays by Combining Micro Indentation andUltraprecision Cutting

(1st report) A Preliminary Study

Abstract

A new manufacturing method for large-area micro lens arrays by combining micro nanoindentation and ultraprecision cutting was proposed. First, micro nanoindentation was performed on mold materials, such as copper and electroless-plated nickel, to obtain micro dimples with curved cross-sectional profiles. The indenter shape was compensated by considering the elastic recovery of workpiece material which could be predicted via the finite element method (FEM). The burrs generated around the dimples were removed by ultraprecision cutting with diamond tools. The indented surface was found to be harder than that of the precut surface, which is beneficial for mold service life.