Micromachining and Its Applications

Machining is one of the fundamental methods for fabricating any material by changing its shape, size and surface. By definition it is the process of removal of part from any material for useful purposes. It provides a very good dimensional tolerance with internal and external geometry. With the advancement in technology the machining work is become more precise and efficient in working on different material having different geometries. Micromachining is much sophisticated fabrication technique that works on a very low dimensional range up to several micrometers. Miniaturizations of components are of great use in advance microsystem technology. Miniaturization of components made up of metal and ceramics are highly preferable in electronics, Micro Electro Mechanical System (MEMS), sensors and other sophisticated instruments. Ceramic Oxides are engineered materials having excellent mechanical, electrical, optical and magnetic properties and due to their unique properties they are exploited for may applications. In this chapter we have discussed about the machining, micromachining, application of metals and ceramics in micromachining and special emphasis on the application of ceramics in micromachining. Discussions on recent research work and future prospective are also included in this section. Machining is the process of giving a piece of work or job a desired shape and size by a controlled material removal process. Machining is controlled manually or computers. Modern day machining is controlled by Computer Numerical Control (CNC) called CNC machining used to control the lathe machine or milling machine. In this chapter micromachining, its type and applications has been discussed to beginners and readers who have interest in the area of material engineering.