Molding of Pb and Zn with microscale mold inserts

Molding of Pb and Zn metal plates with LiGA (Lithographie, Galvanoformung, Abformung) fabricated Ni microscale mold inserts was carried out at 300 °C. Both as fabricated Ni inserts and Ni inserts conformally coated with Ti-containing hydrocarbon (Ti-C:H) coatings were used. The molding performance was characterized both in terms of feature generation on the metal plates and insert condition after molding. The present results demonstrate that, in cases where significant metal/insert chemical interactions exist, surface engineering of the mold insert is necessary to obtain satisfactory performance, and that conformal deposition of suitably engineered ceramic coatings onto Ni microscale mold inserts is an effective means for achieving high temperature micromolding of reactive metals. WJM gratefully acknowledges partial project support from NSF through grant DMI-0124441, Louisiana Board of Regents through contracts LEQSF(2001–04)-RD-A-07 and LEQSF(2000–03)-RD-B-03, and NASA SBIR contract NAS5–01179 through a subcontract with Mezzo Systems Inc.