Mechanisms of microhole formation on glasses by an abrasive slurry jet

Abstract

Abrasive jet micromachining is considered as a promising precision processing technology for brittle materials such as silicon substrates and glasses that are increasingly used in various applications. In this paper, the mechanisms of microhole formation on brittle glasses by an abrasive slurry jet are studied based on the viscous flow and erosion theories. It is shown that the hole cross section is characterized by a “W” shape and can be classified into three zones caused, respectively, by jet direct impact, viscous flow, and turbulent flow induced erosion. An analysis of the surface morphology shows that ductile-mode erosion is dominant. The effect of process parameters on material removal is studied which shows that increasing the pressure and erosion time increases the hole depth, but has little effect on the hole diameter.