Polymer replication of 3D microstructures employing a high content fluorine separation layer

The combination of prototyping with a subsequent replication process has lo ng been the choice for time efficient and economic production schemes. We a dopted this method and developed a new technology for the fabrication of th ree dimensional microstructures based on excimer laser ablation of acrylic polymers and direct inverse replication. Our replicas are made of an acryli c monomer blend cured with UV-photons and electrons. In order to protect th e master copy and to secure a safe and non-destructive separation of master copy and replica, the master copy was homogeneously coated with a high con tent fluorine layer. This coating was applied employing an adjusted C6F14 p lasma polymerization process, resulting in an even 5 nm to less than or equ al to 2 mu m thin anti-adhesion layer. In order to characterize the physica l and chemical properties of the laser processed master copy and replicas, we employed SEM, XPS and optical profiling. The coating's surface smoothnes s was measured to be as low as 4 nm (rms-value) and the surface's fluorine atomic concentration could be raised up to 68.6%. We have been observing a constant chemical composition at the replica's and master copy's surface ov er a period of 20 replication cycles and, in addition. no increase in maste r copy's surface roughness. The results demonstrate that the utilized anti- adhesion layer serves as an enduring separation coating. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.