Elucidation of the visualization process and its influencing factors for the preparation of microcircuits based on arc-beam laser-induced forward transfer

Abstract

Arc beam laser-induced forward transfer (AB-LIFT) based on an arc beam is a promising micro additive manufacturing process to efficiently prepare high-performance metal microcircuits by transferring metal microdroplets. Therefore, elucidating the transfer mechanism of arc-beam-induced microdroplets is crucial to controlling the printing process. In this paper, a dark-field imaging system is developed to visually analyze the transfer process of metal microdroplets, and the injection mechanism of Gaussian and arc-beam laser-induced forward transfer is analyzed. Meanwhile, by studying the deposition behavior of laser-induced forward transfer micro drops with an arc beam at a single pulse energy, it is concluded that the factors affecting the laser-induced forward transfer with an arc beam mainly include the center angle and diameter of the arc beam. Then the effects of the center angle and diameter of the arc beam and the laser parameters on the preparation of microcircuits by AB-LIFT are systematically investigated, and a set of process methods for the effective preparation of high-performance microcircuits is proposed.