Etching AISI 316 Stainless Steel with Aqueous Ferric Chloride-Hy

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.