Picosecond Laser Machining of Metallic and Polymer Substrates for Fluidic Driven Self-Alignment

Fluidic self-alignment of micro-components relies on creating a receptor site that is able to confine a liquid droplet. When a micro-component is brought in contact with the droplet, capillary forces move the component to its final position. A method to stop the advancing of a liquid from a receptor site, consists of creating geometrical features, such as edges around the site. A picosecond pulsed laser source was used to create suitable edges in a metallic and a polyimide substrate. Subsequently, the self-alignment capabilities of these sites were tested. The receptor sites in polyimide showed the highest success rate.