A study of the mechanism of metal deposition by the laser-induced forward transfer process

The mechanism of the laser-induced forward transfer (LIFT) technique for transferring metal features from a film to a substrate is examined by using the one-dimensional thermal diffusion equation with a moving solid-melt boundary to model the heating, melting, and vaporization of the metal film by the laser. For typical LIFT conditions the calculations show that the back of the film (i.e., the part exposed to the laser) will reach the boiling point before the film melts through, which supports the qualitative picture that the LIFT process involves vapor-driven propulsion of metal from the film onto the target.