Abstract
Micro-channels are generally used in micro-fluidic devices and heat sinks for biomedical, chemical, microelectronics, and micro-electromechanical applications. A number of processing techniques are used for fabricating micro-channels on different materials. Laser-based micro-channeling techniques are now gaining popularity because of simplicity, flexibility, repeatability, and reliability of the process. Laser is a versatile non-contact machining tool, which can be utilized to machine any profile contour on almost every type of materials. In this chapter, the attempt is made to furnish a comprehensive technical know-how about laser-based fabrication techniques of micro-channels. An overview on fabrication of micro-channels and their applications, including a brief discussion on operation principles of commonly used micro-channeling techniques is presented in the initial sections. The subsequent sections elaborate laser micro-channeling process, including process fundamentals and process requirements. Thereafter, underwater laser processing of micro-channels is also discussed, which is a recent development in this field. The improvements achieved in terms of dimensional accuracy and quality of micro-channels, by using laser-based fabrication techniques, are reported and discussed to justify the effectiveness of these techniques, which are evidenced by several research findings.
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Acherjee, B. (2020). Laser-based Fabrication of Micro-channels. In: Kibria, G., Bhattacharyya, B. (eds) Accuracy Enhancement Technologies for Micromachining Processes. Lecture Notes in Mechanical Engineering. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-2117-1_5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-2117-1_5
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