Anode structure and method for electroforming ultra-thin metal grid

Abstract

The present invention discloses an anode structure and method for electroforming an ultra-thin metal grid, belonging to the field of electrodeposition processing. The anode structure includes a stirring paddle, a linear ultra-fine anode embedded in the center of the bottom plane of the stirring paddle, and a flexible electrical insulation layer tightly attached to the stirring paddle and the outside of the linear ultra-fine anode, characterized in that: the portion of the flexible electrical insulation layer attached to the bottom plane of the stirring paddle is provided with transparent narrow slits distributed at equal intervals, which divide the linear ultra-fine anode into a plurality of ultra-fine anode arrays, so that the current output under a single ultra-fine anode is highly centralized and localized. The scanning deposition in two processing directions is carried out alternately in a cycle, so that multiple parallel strip metal layers in different directions are cross-stacked to form a quasi-woven metal grid structure. The present invention achieves the regulation of the size of the metal grid by adjusting the width and spacing of the narrow slit, and achieves high-quality and efficient manufacturing of the metal grid by collaboratively controlling the anode operation speed and current density.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to the technical field of electrodeposition processing, in particular to an anode structure and method for manufacturing an ultra-thin metal grid by electroforming. Background Art

[0002] Metal mesh products with mesh characteristics, such as screening mesh, filter mesh, shielding mesh, carrier mesh, spray sheet, etc., are widely used in the fields of screening, sieving, filtering, separation, electromagnetic shielding, etc. Regular hole shape, smooth hole wall, and high geometric consistency are important signs of high-quality metal mesh products.

[0003] Metal meshes are mainly divided into two categories: wire woven and non-woven. The former is widely used in industrial production due to its simple preparation process, low cost, and convenient and diverse material acquisition. However, it has poor hole shape controllability, low geometric shape accuracy, irregular hole wall, many weaving knots, and serious uneven mesh surface, making it unsuitable for high-end applications. Flat non-woven metal meshes have diverse hole shapes, high geometric shape accuracy, good shaping, easy hole size control, and high surface quality. They are the first choice for high-end applications, especially metal meshes with high precision, small aperture, and smooth hole wall, which can only be processed and formed by non-woven methods.

[0004] The manufacturing methods of non-woven fine metal mesh mainly include subtractive method and additive method. The former is achieved by selectively removing materials on a given thin sheet substrate, such as drilling, punching, high-energy beam processing, electrospark processing, dissolution corrosion, etc.; the latter is achieved by stacking and forming according to the designed shape based on the substrate, such as electrodeposition, chemical plating, etc. It is extremely difficult to obtain a hole group structure with a high opening rate by mechanical processing methods such as drilling and stamping, and the efficiency is relatively low; although the processing based on the high-energy beam melting method is efficient and the achievable aperture is small, it can generally only obtain a circular hole structure, and most of the hole wall surface quality is poor; the dissolution corrosion method has the advantages of high efficiency and good hole wall quality, but it cannot obtain a precision micro-mesh with a large aspect ratio and extremely small aperture. The electroforming technology based on the principle of electrodeposition has a huge technical advantage in the manufacturing field of fine metal mesh with small thickness, small hole width and high opening rate because it can process fine metal structures with unlimited thickness and a minimum scale of atomic weight. However, when manufacturing metal grids through conventional electroforming, a patterned film structure must first be prepared using a photolithography process with high process costs, and then electrodeposition replication is performed. In other words, conventional metal grid electroforming is a precision replication process, and therefore, the method heavily relies on a photolithography film-making process with complex operation steps. In response to this, the present invention has developed a method for manufacturing ultra-thin woven-type high-precision metal grids in the form of scanning electroforming, which is simple to operate, low in cost, and widely practical, and does not require prefabricated films, and the anode structure required for the method. Summary of the invention

[0005] The purpose of the present invention is to provide a new anode structure and method for electroforming ultra-thin metal grids, so as to achieve multiple micro-anodes in parallel, highly concentrated and highly localized output current, and efficiently and low-cost processing of ultra-thin woven-type high-precision metal grids by scanning electrodeposition.

[0006] In order to achieve the above technical effects, the technical solution of the present invention is:

[0007] An anode structure for electroforming an ultra-thin metal grid, characterized in that it includes a stirring paddle with a rectangular cross-section, a linear ultra-fine anode embedded in the center of the bottom plane of the stirring paddle, and a flexible electrical insulating layer tightly attached to the stirring paddle and the outside of the linear ultra-fine anode; the bottom edge of the linear ultra-fine anode is flush with the bottom plane of the stirring paddle; the portion of the flexible electrical insulating layer attached to the bottom plane of the stirring paddle is provided with transparent narrow slits distributed at equal intervals.

[0008] The linear ultra-micro anode is made of an electrochemically inert conductive metal material.

[0009] The flexible electrical insulating layer is a flexible electrical insulating material that can be compressed and deformed and has uniform thickness, and its thickness is 0.05-0.2 mm.

[0010] The width of the narrow slits and the distance between them are adjustable.

[0011] The stirring paddle is made of insulating material resistant to acid and alkali corrosion.

[0012] A method for manufacturing an ultra-thin metal grid by electroforming, characterized in that it comprises the following steps:

[0013] S1. placing the flat substrate horizontally in the electrolytic cell, placing the anode structure directly above the flat substrate and making its bottom plane parallel to the flat substrate, and moving the anode structure so that the linear ultrafine anode is directly above the starting position set on the flat substrate;

[0014] S2. adjusting the distance between the anode structure and the planar substrate so that the lower surface of the flexible electrical insulating layer is slightly pressed against the planar substrate, and connecting the linear ultrafine anode and the planar substrate to the positive and negative electrodes of the power supply, respectively;

[0015] S3. Adjusting the liquid level of the electrolyte in the electrolytic cell so that the liquid level of the electrolyte is 5 to 10 mm higher than the bottom edge of the linear ultrafine anode;

[0016] S4. When the power is turned on, the anode structure is driven to move on the flat substrate according to the set stroke. L 1 The plane substrate is subjected to uniform linear reciprocating motion. At this time, the area corresponding to the transparent narrow slit on the plane substrate continuously deposits a strip-shaped metal layer A. When the thickness of the metal layer A reaches the set value,h 1 When , the anode structure stops moving and the power supply is turned off;

[0017] S5. lowering the planar substrate and rotating it at a set angle relative to the linear ultra-fine anode, and then moving the anode structure so that it is located directly above the starting position of the new scanning direction and scanning stroke on the planar substrate, and then lifting the planar substrate until the lower surface of the flexible electrical insulating layer is slightly pressed against the planar substrate;

[0018] S6. When the power is turned on, the anode structure is driven to move on the flat substrate according to the set stroke. L 2 The uniform linear reciprocating motion is performed. At this time, the area corresponding to the transparent narrow slit on the plane substrate continuously deposits a strip-shaped metal layer B, and when the thickness of the metal layer B reaches the set value h 1 When , the anode structure stops moving and the power supply is turned off;

[0019] S7. Lower the flat substrate and rotate it back to the position in step S4 relative to the linear ultrafine anode, then move the anode structure so that it is located directly above the starting position of the scanning movement in step S4 on the flat substrate, then lift the flat substrate until the lower surface of the flexible electrical insulating layer is slightly pressed against the flat substrate, start the power supply and drive the anode structure to the set stroke L 1 Do reciprocating linear motion, when the thickness of metal layer A reaches the set value h 2 When , the anode structure stops moving and the power supply is turned off;

[0020] S8. Lower the flat substrate and rotate it back to the position in step S5 relative to the linear ultrafine anode, then move the anode structure so that it is located directly above the starting position of the scanning movement in step S5 on the flat substrate, then lift the flat substrate until the lower surface of the flexible electrical insulating layer is slightly pressed against the flat substrate, start the power supply and drive the anode structure to the set stroke L 2 Do reciprocating linear motion, when the thickness of metal layer B reaches the set value h 2 When , the anode structure stops moving and the power supply is turned off;

[0021] S9. Repeat the operations of step S7 and step S8 in a loop until the total thickness of metal layer A and metal layer B reaches the set value H , at this time, the anode structure stops moving and the power supply is turned off;

[0022] S10. The planar substrate is taken out, cleaned and dried, and then the cross-stacked metal layer A and metal layer B are peeled off from the planar substrate to obtain a final ultra-thin metal grid.

[0023] The total thickness of the metal layer H The thickness of the metal layer deposited in each scan in a single scanning direction h 1 , h 2 , h 3 ∙∙∙∙∙∙ h i Assignment of .

[0024] The movement speed of the anode structure is 1-10 mm / s, and the travel in each processing direction does not exceed the length of the substrate in that direction.

[0025] The working principle involved in the present invention is as follows.

[0026] The flexible electrical insulating layer with narrow slits divides the linear ultrafine anode into several ultrafine anode arrays, so that the current output under a single ultrafine anode is highly concentrated and localized. The narrow slit structure limits the range of the electric field distribution on the substrate, thereby avoiding deposition in non-intentional areas and improving the processing accuracy and localization. The anode structure is driven by the transmission device to perform uniform linear reciprocating motion. After adjusting the relative position between the anode structure and the plane substrate, the power is turned on. The area corresponding to the transparent narrow slit on the plane substrate continuously deposits a strip metal layer. After the thickness of the metal layer deposited in the first scanning direction reaches the set value, the substrate is rotated to the second direction to be processed for scanning electrodeposition. When the thickness of the metal layer in this direction reaches the same set value, the substrate is rotated back to the previous scanning direction for scanning electrodeposition. The operations in the above two scanning directions are cycled in sequence until the total thickness of the metal layer in the two scanning directions reaches the final set value and the processing is stopped. The metal layers in the two scanning directions are stacked in turn to form a woven metal grid structure. During the processing, the high-quality and efficient manufacturing of the metal grid is achieved by collaboratively controlling the anode running speed and current density.

[0027] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following significant features and advantages.

[0028] 1. Simple operation and low cost.

[0029] This method uses a flexible electrical insulating layer in contact with the substrate as a mask, and performs cyclic scanning electrodeposition in two different directions of the substrate in sequence, so that the parallel strip-shaped deposition layers in the two directions are cross-stacked in sequence to form a preset woven-like metal grid structure. The total length and width of the processed metal grid can be freely set according to the size of the substrate, and the grid wire diameter and period size can be flexibly controlled by adjusting the width of the transparent narrow slits on the flexible electrical insulating layer and the distance between them. Compared with traditional mask electrodeposition processing, this method omits the complicated preparation process of the photoresist mask, is simple to operate, and has low process cost.

[0030] 2. Wide practicability and good process flexibility.

[0031] The metal grid processed by the anode structure and method of electroforming an ultra-thin metal grid of the present invention is a quasi-woven structure with straight-edge holes, with high hole shape precision and not easy to deform, and is an effective tool for precision screening, filtering and separation, and has wide practicality. During the processing, the rotation angle of the substrate is designed to realize the preparation of metal grids with different hole structures (such as square, diamond, triangle, etc.), and the pass rate and resistivity of the metal grid can be adjusted by changing the width and spacing of the narrow slit, and the process flexibility is good.

[0032] 3. The processing device has a simple structure and is easy to implement.

[0033] The present invention discloses an anode structure and method for electroforming an ultra-thin metal grid, wherein the linear ultra-micro anode at the bottom of the anode structure is divided into micro-anode groups arranged at equal intervals by a flexible electrical insulating layer with a transparent narrow slit structure, and different control effects on the size and spacing of the micro-anodes can be achieved by selecting flexible insulating materials with different narrow slit sizes, without the need to process and prepare the metal anodes, and the overall structure of the device is simple, easy to implement, and highly practical. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0034] Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram of the anode structure and processing method of the present invention.

[0035] Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view of the anode structure of the present invention.

[0036] Figure 3 It is a schematic diagram of the quasi-woven metal grid structure processed by the present invention.

[0037] In the figure: 1. Plane substrate; 2. Stirring paddle; 3. Flexible electrical insulating layer; 3-1. Transparent narrow slit; 4. Linear ultrafine anode; 5. Metal grid; 5-1. Metal layer A; 5-2. Metal layer B; 6. Power supply; 7. Electrolytic cell; 8. Electrolyte; 9. Overall anode structure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0038] The following takes the processing of a square metal grid as an example and further describes the implementation of the present invention in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0039] like Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, an anode structure of an ultra-thin metal grid manufactured by electroforming, which includes a stirring paddle 2 with a rectangular cross-section, a linear ultra-micro anode 4 embedded in the center of the bottom plane of the stirring paddle 2 and with the lowest edge flush with the bottom end surface of the stirring paddle 2, and a flexible electrical insulating layer 3 tightly attached to the stirring paddle 2 and the outer side of the linear ultra-micro anode 4; the linear ultra-micro anode 4 is made of metal platinum; the flexible electrical insulating layer 3 is made of silicone with a thickness of 0.2mm, and a transparent narrow slit 3-1 with a spacing of 0.5mm and a width of 0.2mm is provided on the attachment surface of the flexible electrical insulating layer 3 to the bottom end plane of the stirring paddle 2; the stirring paddle 2 is made of polypropylene.

[0040] See also Figure 1 A method for electroforming an ultra-thin metal grid mainly comprises the following steps:

[0041] S1. The flat substrate 1 is horizontally placed in the electrolytic cell 7, the anode structure 9 is placed directly above the flat substrate 1 and its bottom plane is parallel to the flat substrate 1, and the anode structure 9 is moved so that the linear ultrafine anode 4 is located directly above the starting side of the scanning direction on the flat substrate 1;

[0042] S2. Adjust the distance between the anode structure 9 and the planar substrate 1 so that the lower surface of the flexible insulating layer 3 is slightly pressed against the planar substrate 1, and the linear ultrafine anode 4 and the planar substrate 1 are respectively connected to the positive and negative electrodes of the power supply 6;

[0043] S3 adjust the liquid level of the electrolyte 8 in the electrolytic cell 7 so that the liquid level of the electrolyte 8 is higher than the bottom edge of the linear ultrafine anode 4 by 5 to 10 mm;

[0044] S4. While starting the power supply 6, the anode structure 9 is driven on the plane substrate 1 according to the length of the plane substrate 1 in the direction as the set stroke. L 1 The anode structure 9 performs a uniform linear reciprocating motion at a speed of 2 mm / s. At this time, a strip-shaped metal layer A5-1 is continuously deposited in the area corresponding to the transparent narrow slit 3-1 on the plane substrate 1. When the thickness of the metal layer A5-1 reaches 2 μm, the anode structure 9 stops moving and turns off the power supply 6.

[0045] S5. The planar substrate 1 is lowered and rotated 90° relative to the linear ultrafine anode 4, and then the anode structure 9 is moved so that it is located directly above the starting side of the scanning direction on the planar substrate 1, and then the planar substrate 1 is lifted until the lower surface of the flexible electrical insulating layer 3 is slightly pressed against the planar substrate 1;

[0046] S6. While starting the power supply 6, drive the anode structure 9 on the plane substrate 1 according to the length of the plane substrate 1 in the direction as the set stroke L 2 It performs a uniform linear reciprocating motion at a speed of 2 mm / s. At this time, a strip-shaped metal layer B5-2 is continuously electrodeposited in the area corresponding to the through narrow slit 3-1 on the plane substrate 1. When the thickness of the metal layer B5-2 reaches 2 μm, the anode structure 9 stops moving and turns off the power supply 6.

[0047] S7. Lower the flat substrate 1 and rotate it back to the position in step S4 relative to the linear ultrafine anode 4, then move the anode structure 9 so that it is located directly above the starting position of the scanning movement in step S4 on the flat substrate 1, then lift the flat substrate 1 until the lower surface of the flexible electrical insulating layer 3 is slightly pressed against the flat substrate 1, start the power supply 6 and drive the anode structure 9 to follow the set stroke. L 1 Performing reciprocating linear motion, when the thickness of the metal layer A5-1 reaches 4 μm, the anode structure stops moving and turns off the power supply 6;

[0048] S8. Lower the flat substrate 1 and rotate it back to the position in step S5 relative to the linear ultrafine anode 4, then move the anode structure 9 so that it is located directly above the starting position of the scanning movement in step S5 on the flat substrate 1, then lift the flat substrate 1 until the lower surface of the flexible electrical insulating layer 3 is slightly pressed against the flat substrate 1, start the power supply 6 and drive the anode structure 9 to follow the set stroke. L 2 Performing reciprocating linear motion, when the thickness of the metal layer B5-2 reaches 4 μm, the anode structure 9 stops moving and turns off the power supply 6;

[0049] S9. Repeating steps S7 and S8 8 times in a cycle until the total thickness of the metal layer A5-1 and the metal layer B5-2 reaches 20 μm, at which time the anode structure 9 stops moving and turns off the power supply 6;

[0050] S10. The planar substrate 1 is taken out, cleaned and dried, and then the cross-stacked metal layer A5-1 and the metal layer B5-2 are peeled off from the planar substrate 1 to obtain the final ultra-thin metal grid 5.

Claims

1. A method for manufacturing an ultra-thin metal grid by electroforming, characterized in that: It includes the following steps: S1. placing the planar substrate (1) horizontally in the electrolytic cell (7), placing the anode structure (9) directly above the planar substrate (1) with its bottom plane parallel to the planar substrate (1), and moving the anode structure (9) so that the linear ultrafine anode (4) is directly above the starting position set on the planar substrate (1); S2. adjusting the distance between the anode structure (9) and the planar substrate (1) so that the lower surface of the flexible electrical insulating layer (3) is slightly pressed against the planar substrate (1), and connecting the linear ultrafine anode (4) and the planar substrate (1) to the positive and negative electrodes of the power supply (6), respectively; S3. Adjusting the liquid level of the electrolyte (8) in the electrolytic cell (7) so that the liquid level of the electrolyte (8) is 5 to 10 mm higher than the bottom edge of the linear ultrafine anode (4); S4. While starting the power supply (6), drive the anode structure (9) on the flat substrate (1) according to the set stroke L 1 The substrate (1) performs a uniform linear reciprocating motion. At this time, a strip-shaped metal layer A (5-1) is continuously deposited in the area corresponding to the through narrow slit (3-1) on the plane substrate (1). When the thickness of the metal layer A (5-1) reaches a set value, h 1 When the anode structure (9) stops moving and the power supply (6) is turned off; S5. lowering the planar substrate (1) and rotating it at a set angle relative to the linear ultrafine anode (4), then moving the anode structure (9) so that it is located directly above the starting position of the new scanning direction and scanning stroke on the planar substrate (1), and then lifting the planar substrate (1) until the lower surface of the flexible electrical insulating layer (3) is slightly pressed against the planar substrate (1); S6. While starting the power supply (6), drive the anode structure (9) on the flat substrate (1) according to the set stroke L 2 The substrate (1) performs a uniform linear reciprocating motion. At this time, a strip-shaped metal layer B (5-2) is continuously deposited in the area corresponding to the through narrow slit (3-1) on the plane substrate (1). When the thickness of the metal layer B (5-2) reaches a set value, h 1 When the anode structure (9) stops moving and the power supply (6) is turned off; S7. Lower the planar substrate (1) and rotate it back to the position in step S4 relative to the linear ultrafine anode (4), then move the anode structure (9) so that it is located directly above the starting position of the scanning movement in step S4 on the planar substrate (1), then lift the planar substrate (1) until the lower surface of the flexible electrical insulating layer (3) is slightly pressed against the planar substrate (1), start the power supply (6) and drive the anode structure (9) to a set stroke. L 1 Perform uniform linear reciprocating motion. When the thickness of metal layer A (5-1) reaches the set value h 2 When the anode structure (9) stops moving and the power supply (6) is turned off; S8. Lower the planar substrate (1) and rotate it back to the position in step S5 relative to the linear ultrafine anode (4), then move the anode structure (9) so that it is located directly above the starting position of the scanning movement in step S5 on the planar substrate (1), then lift the planar substrate (1) until the lower surface of the flexible electrical insulating layer (3) is slightly pressed against the planar substrate (1), start the power supply (6) and drive the anode structure (9) to a set stroke. L 2 Perform uniform linear reciprocating motion. When the thickness of metal layer B (5-2) reaches the set value h 2 When the anode structure (9) stops moving and the power supply (6) is turned off; S9. Repeat the operations of step S7 and step S8 in sequence until the total thickness of metal layer A (5-1) and metal layer B (5-2) reaches the set value. H At this time, the anode structure (9) stops moving and the power supply (6) is turned off; S10. The planar substrate (1) is taken out, and after cleaning and drying, the cross-stacked metal layer A (5-1) and metal layer B (5-2) are peeled off from the planar substrate (1) to obtain a final ultra-thin metal grid (5).

2. The method for electroforming an ultra-thin metal grid according to claim 1, characterized in that: The total thickness of the metal layer H The thickness of the metal layer deposited in each scan in a single scanning direction h 1 , h 2 , h 3 ∙∙∙∙∙∙ h i Assignment of .

3. The method for electroforming an ultra-thin metal grid according to claim 1, characterized in that: The movement speed and stroke size of the anode structure (9) are adjustable.

4. An anode structure used in the method for electroforming an ultra-thin metal grid as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: The anode structure comprises a stirring paddle (2) having a rectangular cross-section, a linear ultrafine anode (4) embedded in the center of the bottom plane of the stirring paddle (2), and a flexible electrical insulation layer (3) tightly attached to the stirring paddle (2) and the outer side of the linear ultrafine anode (4); the bottom edge of the linear ultrafine anode (4) is flush with the bottom plane of the stirring paddle (2); and the portion of the flexible electrical insulation layer (3) attached to the bottom plane of the stirring paddle (2) is provided with transparent narrow slits (3-1) distributed at equal intervals.

5. An anode structure according to claim 4, characterized in that: The linear ultrafine anode (4) is made of an electrochemically inert conductive metal material.

6. An anode structure according to claim 4, characterized in that: The flexible electrical insulation layer (3) is a flexible electrical insulation material that can be compressed and deformed and has a uniform thickness, and its thickness is 0.05-0.2 mm.

7. An anode structure according to claim 4, characterized in that: The width of the narrow slits (3-1) and the distance between them are adjustable.

8. An anode structure according to claim 4, characterized in that: The stirring paddle (2) is made of an electrically insulating material that is resistant to acid and alkali corrosion.

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