Micromachining techniques for manufacturing high aspect ratio microelectrodes: A review

Abstract

The advancement in micromanufacturing techniques has increased due to the demand for microtools used in biomedical engineering. The development of tailored micro-sized components has advanced significantly as manufacturing accuracy has improved. Although the machining of smaller dimensions is not new, difficulties arise when features are reduced to tens or hundreds of microns in size. Micro-machining technology is progressing towards the production of complex 3D parts. The creation of very precise equipment is essential to achieving productivity goals in terms of effectiveness, adaptability, robustness, and accuracy. Since even a minor modification can have a significant impact on machining performance, precise control over the machining variables is essential. This review paper describes the literature of subtractive micro manufacturing processes (traditional and advanced). In addition to subtractive processes, an overview of various micro machining techniques such as additive, mass containing and joining processes has been studied. In this paper, various micromachining techniques for fabricating high aspect ratio microelectrodes are studied and evaluated to find the suitable machining process to fabricate micro electrodes. The growing demand in the micro sector has attracted attention to the fabrication of high-aspect micro tools with diameters below 100 μm and high accuracy and precision.