In the field of micro technology highest accuracies in terms of position, angles and distances are of particular importance. It is becoming increasingly expensive and difficult to directly position and fix critical components to each other for two reasons: on the one hand, the dimensions and thus the tolerances get smaller due to ongoing miniaturisation and on the other hand, the number of integrated functional components is rising constantly. To keep expenses reasonable, the method of choice therefore often is roughly tolerated assembly followed by high-precision adjustment. This paper presents the up-to-date challenges and possibilities of micro adjustment technology by looking at current and future devices manufactured in such a manner.
Appropriate adjustment processes for small dimensions can be achieved by downscaling well-known process mechanisms such as the temperature gradient mechanism. An adaptation like this is, however, most often heavily limited as many materials will be more sensitive to mechanical or thermal loads when going from macro to micro scale. It is therefore necessary to develop novel adjustment mechanisms which are suited for micro or even nano scale. Very promising results on this topic were achieved with the novel micro shockwave adjustment process developed at the Bavarian Laser Centre. This paper will deal with the temperature gradient mechanism as an example of an established process mechanism, the limits of downscaling and the latest research results on the micro shockwave adjustment process including planned applications.