Process for Fabrication of Micro-Hohlraum via Electroless Copper Plating

Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) mandrel was used as substrate and coated with electroless Cu coating after catalytic activation, generating Cu coating of a certain thickness in the presence of the self-catalytic action of the coating itself. The PMMA mandrel coated with Cu coating was then corroded and dissolved using chloroform, generating micro-hohlraum made of electroless Cu coating. The effects of the main ingredients in ammonium sulfite plating bath on the plating rate and properties of the coating were investigated. It was found that the Cu coating micro-hohlraum had a wall thickness of 10～30 μm and length of about 2 mm, and contained Cu above 95%. The established electroless Cu plating process could be used to prepare inertial confinement fusion (ICF) fabricate metallic hohlraum.