Experimental investigation of fabrication properties of electroformed Ni-based micro mould inserts

In this work, Ni and Ni-Fe micro mould inserts with high aspect ratios are fabricated by Si-LIGA. Many analyses were performed to elucidate the material properties of Ni-based micro mould inserts. The surface properties were examined using a scanning probe microscope (SPM). Nanoindentation was used to measure the elastic modulus and hardness of Ni-Fe microstructures. When the iron content of Ni-Fe micro mould inserts exceeded 12%, the grain size of the Ni-Fe alloy was under 15 nm. Additionally, the mechanical properties of Ni-based microstructures obtained by electroforming are superior to those obtained by casting or powder metallurgy. Satisfactory electroforming current densities for obtaining a mould insert with a fine surface profile ranged from 4 ASD to 6 ASD.