Summer 1988

Etching AISI 316 Stainless Steel with Aqueous Ferric Chloride-Hydrochloric Acid Solutions

Introduction Although stainless steel foils are the most frequently etched class of ferrous materials, published information on how best to photoetch them is scant. Whilst photomechanical processing to obtain a photoresist stencil on the foil is relatively straightforward (1,2), the corrosion-resistant properties of the material necessitate that the etchant be formulated with care.

Dr. David Allen and Mu-LinLi, Cranfield Institute of Technology