Atomic and close-to-atomic scale manufacturing (ACSM) represents techniques for manufacturing high-end products in various fields, including future-generation computing, communication, energy, and medical devices and materials. In this paper, the theoretical boundary between ACSM and classical manufacturing is identified after a thorough discussion of quantum mechanics and their effects on manufacturing. The physical origins of atomic interactions and energy beams-matter interactions are revealed from the point view of quantum mechanics. The mechanisms that dominate several key ACSM processes are introduced, and a current numerical study on these processes is reviewed. A comparison of current ACSM processes is performed in terms of dominant interactions, representative processes, resolution and modelling methods. Future fundamental research is proposed for establishing new approaches for modelling ACSM, material selection or preparation and control of manufacturing tools and environments. This paper is by no means comprehensive but provides a starting point for further systematic investigation of ACSM fundamentals to support and accelerate its industrial scale implementation in the near future.

The ability to predict the grinding force for hard and brittle materials is important to optimize and control the grinding process. However, it is a difficult task to establish a comprehensive grinding force model that takes into account the brittle fracture, grinding conditions, and random distribution of the grinding wheel topography. Therefore, this study developed a new grinding force model for micro-grinding of reaction-bonded silicon carbide (RB-SiC) ceramics. First, the grinding force components and grinding trajectory were analysed based on the critical depth of rubbing, ploughing, and brittle fracture. Afterwards, the corresponding individual grain force were established and the total grinding force was derived through incorporating the single grain force with dynamic cutting grains. Finally, a series of calibration and validation experiments were conducted to obtain the empirical coefficient and verify the accuracy of the model. It was found that ploughing and fracture were the dominate removal modes, which illustrate that the force components decomposed are correct. Furthermore, the values predicted according to the proposed model are consistent with the experimental data, with the average deviation of 6.793% and 8.926% for the normal and tangential force, respectively. This suggests that the proposed model is acceptable and can be used to simulate the grinding force for RB-SiC ceramics in practice.

Leveraging surface texturing to realize significant friction reduction at contact interfaces has emerged as a preferred technique among tribology experts, boosting tribological energy efficiency and sustainability. This review systematically demonstrates optimization strategies, advanced manufacturing methods, typical applications, and outlooks of technical challenges toward surface texturing for friction reduction. Firstly, the lubricated contact models of microtextures are introduced. Then, we provide a framework of state-of-the-art research on synergistic friction optimization strategies of microtexture structures, surface treatments, liquid lubricants, and external energy fields. A comparative analysis evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of manufacturing techniques commonly employed for microtextured surfaces. The latest research advancements in microtextures in different application scenarios are highlighted. Finally, the challenges and directions of future research on surface texturing technology are briefly addressed. This review aims to elaborate on the worldwide progress in the optimization, manufacturing, and application of microtexture-enabled friction reduction technologies to promote their practical utilizations.

Surfaces with anisotropic superhydrophobicity have great potential applications in drug delivery and microfluidic devices due to their unique properties of drag reduction and unidirectional fluid transportation. Observations of natural biological surfaces have proven that directional microstructures are indispensable for realizing anisotropic superhydrophobicity. However, current lithography-based manufacturing approaches have limited capabilities to scale-up for real-world industrial applications. This paper proposes a sequential process of laser ablation and chemical etching, for the first time, to manufacture ratchet-like microstructures on AISI 316L stainless steel by harvesting the advantages of both methods. The laser ablation will form a specified recast layer that will be covered by an oxide layer on the specimen, and these two layers can be easily removed in the chemical etching process to obtain the periodic ratchet-like microstructures. According to the experimental results, the direction of the microstructures is determined by the laser beam feed direction. Both the width and depth of microstructures increase with increasing laser power, which results in the disappearance of ridges. However, the increasing pitch will lead to the ridges appearing again. The specimen with a pitch of 25 μm machined at a laser power of 20 W has a maximum contact angle of 158.2°. Moreover, with a dip angle of 7°, this specimen shows a strong anisotropic superhydrophobicity, the droplet easily rolls off the surface in the laser beam feed direction; however, it is pinned tightly in the opposite direction.

Focused ion beam (FIB) machining is a promising technique for the fabrication of micro-optical components with high quality surface finishes. In this work, a prototype of a side aligned optical fibre interferometer was successfully fabricated by the three-dimensional deterministic FIB machining technique. A highly accurate 45° reflective mirror with surface roughness (Ra) of 10 nm has been successfully fabricated at the centre of the fibre to direct the core guided light to the side of the fibre. A surface topography simulation method was developed to simulate the ion beam polishing process. According to the simulation result, a 0.5° offset on the ion beam polishing direction is necessary to maintain the machining accuracy. In the fabrication process, it was also found that for structures requiring a high aspect ratio the existence of an open edge can mitigate against the material redeposition on the sidewalls and therefore increase the overall material removal rate. The fibre has been tested optically and the interference signals have been successfully observed, demonstrating the alignment accuracy of the fabrication method.