Fabrication of microprism mould by electroforming with high electrolyte flowrate

Electroforming is applied to fabricate microprism moulds, however only low working current density is employed because the higher current density at the edge limits the usable value of the working current density. Reduction of current density at the edge is a key in the enhancement of the working current density. In this paper, a secondary cathode was introduced to lower the edge current density. By this technique, the edge current density of the primary cathode surface is not only weakened obviously but can be even lower than that of the others. In addition, a high electrolyte flow rate has been introduced to improve working current density. Experimental results show that both the microhardness and tensile strength of the electroformed layer increase with electrolyte flowrate. By using both secondary cathode and high speed electrolyte flow, the electroforming time could be reduced significantly and mechanical properties of the electroformed layer are not adversely affected in electroforming of microprism moulds.