Microfabrication of green ceramics: Contact vs. non-contact machining

Micromilling of ceramics is challenging due to its high hardness and low fracture toughness. Manufacturing of small components by non-contact micromachining of green ceramics could be a viable approach to overcome limitation associated with sintered state machining. In the present study, micromachining of green ceramics was carried out by contact (milling) and non-contact (laser ablation) methods and processibility was compared as well. Machining parameters such as machinability of micro-scale features, relative machining time and reproducibility were studied. Depth of machining, surface roughness, surface morphology, and changes in edge of machined features were analyzed.