Polymer structure and properties in micro- and nanomolding process

Injection molding of thin-wall parts with micro/nano-scale patterns using various polymers was performed to clarify the processability and surface replication of molded parts. Effects of process conditions on processability, higher-order structure and surface properties of molded parts were evaluated. The optical anisotropy in the vicinity of the gate became higher than at any other positions. The height replication ratio of surface patterns increased with increasing injection speed, holding pressure, injection temperature and mold temperature. In the case of nanomolding, negative birefringence toward the flow direction appeared higher than at the skin–shear region from the observation of skin–shear and core structure inside molded parts. Thus, the molecular orientation axis was oriented along the thickness direction because of deformation during the demolding process. Thermal stability of nano-surface patterns was influenced by the size of surface features and internal higher-order structure.