UV-NIL fabricated bio-inspired inlays for injection molding to influence the friction behavior of ceramic surfaces

Display Omitted We replicated snake-skin nanofeatures using UV-NIL and ceramic injection molding.We fabricated polymeric mold inlays for ceramic injection molding.Using these, we transferred the snake-skin features onto non-flat ceramic surfaces.We design a slightly enlarged snake-skin inspired micropattern.The use of the artificial design reduced the friction on a ceramic surface. We demonstrate the successful replication of biological surface structures, specifically the surface of the ventral snake skin, onto polymer foils using UV-assisted nanoimprint lithography (NIL). The foils were used as mold inlays for ceramic injection molding. Additionally, artificial structures mimicking the snake skin were designed by 3D lithography. The size of the features that can be replicated into the ceramics depends on the ceramic grain size after sintering. This study demonstrates that the transfer of complex biological and artificial structures onto the surfaces of non-flat ceramic parts is possible, including their anisotropic friction-reducing properties.