Abstract
Roll-to-roll nanoimprint lithography (RTR-NIL) is a low-cost and continuous fabrication process for large-area functional films. However, the partial ultraviolet (UV) resin filling obstructs the ongoing production process. This study incorporates UV resin filling process into the nanopillars and nanopores by using RTR-NIL. A multiphase numerical model with a sliding mesh method is proposed in this study to show the actual phenomena of imprint mold rotation and feeding of UV resin on the polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrate. The implementation of UV resin filling under environmental conditions was performed by utilizing the open-channel (OC) boundary conditions. The numerical model was solved by using the explicit volume of fluid (VOF) scheme to compute the filling on each node of the computational domain. The effects of different processing parameters were investigated through the proposed numerical model such as imprinting speed (IS), contact angles (CAs), viscosity, initial thickness of the PET, and supporting roll diameter. A good agreement was found between numerical simulations and experimental results. The proposed numerical model gives better insights of the filling process for the mass production of functional surfaces with nanopillars and nanopores patterns for different applications on an industrial scale.
Highlights
Mass production of nanopatterns by using roll-to-roll UV nanoimprint lithography (RTR-UV-NIL) drew the attention of several researchers because of its practical significance in the micro/nanofabrication industry [1]
In cavity A, the air is locked above the UV resin and has no way to escape throughout the filling process
A multiphase numerical model with open-channel (OC) boundary conditions was utilized in this study together with the sliding mesh method technique
Summary
Mass production of nanopatterns by using roll-to-roll UV nanoimprint lithography (RTR-UV-NIL) drew the attention of several researchers because of its practical significance in the micro/nanofabrication industry [1]. They performed numerical simulations without accounting for air in the model. Peng et al [12] employed multiphase model and investigated the UV resin filling into the pyramid shape cavity by accounting air in their numerical model. Zhou et al [9] employed multiphase modeling technique and discussed UV resin accumulation as an important parameters during the filling process. The numerical model is based upon a single zone and optimize the filling behavior on the prior and succeeding ends of the imprint mold. The numerical modeling of the UV resin filling process into the nanocavities for mass production was not discussed in the literature until now. We proposed a theoretical model to optimize the filling of UV resin into the nanocavities for the mass production of functional films.
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