Modification of the curing characteristics of the photocurable resin FA1260T for 3D microfabrication using microstereolithography

Abstract

The curing characteristics of a photocurable resin are critical factors that often decide the ultimate resolution and structural sharpness of a final product fabricated by microstereolithography (μ-STL). In this study, we investigated the curing characteristics of the FA1260T photopolymer under a visible laser light of 442nm wavelength. Modification of the curing property of the FA1260T is attempted to reduce the cure depth (Dc) by adding a radical quencher to the resin. Also, an organic solvent was used to reduce the resin viscosity for an improvement of the flatness of the liquid surface during layer-by-layer curing. As a result, the minimum Dc has been reduced over a factor of 3 with no abrupt increase. Samples of three dimensional microstructures fabricated using the modified FA1260T are presented.