Some Contributions at the Technology of Electrochemical Micromachining with Ultra Short Voltage Pulses

Abstract

The tendency to make progressively smaller and increasingly complex products is no longer an exclusive demand of the electronics industry. Many fields such as medicine, biomechanical technology, the automotive, and the aviation industries are searching for tools and methods to realize microand nanostructures in various materials. The microstructuring of very hard materials, like carbides or brittle-hard materials, pose a particularly major challenge for manufacturing technology in the near future. For these reasons the Institute for Production Engineering and Laser Technology (IFT) of the Vienna University of Technology is working in the field of electrochemical micromachining with ultra short voltage pulses (μPECM) in nanosecond duration. With the theoretical resolution of 10 nm, this technology enables high precision manufacturing. [Kock M.]. A question, which can illustrate the motivation to do this research work in this field, is: “Which parameters have to be set at a production machine and which framework conditions have to be managed to reach a desired result?” To answer this question for the materials nickel and steel (1.4301), the IFT has done experimental work.