Replication of deep micro-optical components prototyped by Deep Proton Writing

Using our rapid prototyping technology called Deep Proton Writing (DPW), we have in recent years made a wide range of micro-optical components with a large depth (500-mu m) for a variety of applications. One of these components is a pluggable out-of-plane coupler for printed circuit board-level optical interconnections. Whereas DPW is capable of rapidly fabricating high-quality master components, the technology is not suitable for low-cost mass fabrication. Therefore, we investigate the replication of out-of-plane coupling components using hot embossing, through the fabrication of a metal mould of the DPW master by applying electroplating. We compare these hot embossed replicas with components replicated using the elastomeric mould vacuum casting technology.