Experimental study of hybrid extrusion rolling embossing process for replicating large-area micropattern devices

Abstract

This paper reports a highly effective method for replicating large-area micropattern devices through hybrid extrusion rolling embossing using a roller mold, wherein a thin stainless steel mold with a large-area micropattern is wrapped onto a metallic roll to form a roller mold. During the hybrid extrusion rolling embossing period, the molten polymer film is extruded and immediately pressed against the embossing roller and roller mold, which results in the molten polymer completely filling the micropattern on the surface of the roller mold. Next, the molten polymer film is cooled and wound using a conveying system equipped with highly polished rollers. Thus, a continuous polymer film with many large-area micropattern devices can be fabricated. In this study, a new hybrid extrusion rolling embossing system was designed, constructed, and tested; the basic film extrusion and rolling embossing conditions were investigated; and the thickness uniformity of the polymer films and the replication quality of the micropattern devices were measured and analyzed. The results indicate that the hybrid extrusion rolling embossing can potentially be used for continuous mass production of large-area micropattern devices.