X Y parallel compliant stage with compact configuration.

This paper presents a piezo-driven compliant stage for nano positioning with two degree-of-freedom parallel linear motions. Nano positioning is one of the most important factors in completion of nanotechnologies. It can be accomplished by flexure-based compliant stages driven by piezo-actuators. For compact configuration, the compliant stage is stacked by two-layered compliant mechanisms. The upper layer contains a motion guide mechanism, and the lower layer two displacement amplification mechanisms. The motion guide mechanism consists of four prismatic-prismatic parallel compliant joint chains for two translational motion guides. The displacement amplification mechanism is adopted by a flexure-based flextensional amplification mechanism driven by a stack-type piezo actuator. Due to the parallel compliant joint chains, the stage has the same dynamics in the x and y axes. In this study, through design and analysis, the mechanisms were machined via wire electro-discharge machining and are were then integrated with two stack-type piezoelectric elements for actuation, and two capacitive sensors for ultra-precision displacement measurement. Finally, experiments were carried out to demonstrate the performance of the compliant stage.

Replication of a thin polydimethylsiloxane stamp and its application to dual-nanoimprint lithography for 3D hybrid nano/micropatterns.

This paper presents the fabrication of a thin and flexible polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) stamp with a thickness of a few tens of um and its application to nanoimprint lithography (NIL). The PDMS material generally has a low elastic modulus and high adhesive characteristics. Therefore, after being treated, the thin PDMS stamp is easily deformed and torn, adhering to itself and other materials. This paper introduces the use of a metal ring around the flange of a thin PDMS stamp to assist with the handling of this material. A PDMS stamp with a motheye pattern in nanometer scale was inserted between a substrate and a microstamp with concave patterns in micrometer scale. Subsequently, three-dimensional (3D) hybrid nano/micropatterns were fabricated by pressing these two stamps and curing the resist. The fabricated hybrid patterns were measured and verified in both the microscale and nanoscale. The process, termed "dual NIL," can be applied to the fabrication of optical components or bio-sensors that require repetitive nanopatterns on micropatterns.