GP-Silica
GP-Silica is the world’s first photoresin for 3D printing silica glass microstructures by Two-Photon Polymerization (2PP). High optical transparency combined with thermal, mechanical and chemical stability enable new applications.
Specifically designed for
3D printing glass microstructures
GP-Silica is the centerpiece of the Glass Printing Explorer Set and was developed in a joint research project with Glassomer. The Glass Printing Explorer Set offers everything you need for printing freeform microstructures made of fused silica glass out of the box. The set includes the photoresin GP-Silica, silicon substrates, several print accessories and detailed processing instructions for a successful print. These instructions contain recommendations and notes on print job preparations, a preset of printing parameters and detailed information about the thermal post-process.
Explore microstructuring of glass
Discover glass printing with our explorer set. Two-Photon Polymerization (2PP) of fused silica glass encourages the exploration of new applications in life sciences or other fields that require the outstanding properties of glass.
Please note that, due to its special manufacturing process including thermal sintering, fabricating glass structures with GP-Silica is more complex than with classical IP Photoresins, and the achievable resolution is lower. However, with some experience, you can achieve excellent results. See the gallery on this page for examples and the specifications for more details.
The features of GP-Silica at a glance:
- High mechanical, chemical and thermal stability
- High optical transparency from UV to IR
- Smooth optical quality surfaces
- Inorganic material for the exploration of new applications
Prof. Nicolas Muller, Haute école d'ingénierie et d'architecture de Fribourg
GP-Silica has great potential for our research manufacturing complex microfluidics systems, although the required thermal post-processing is demanding.
Two-photon curable silica nanocomposite
The glass printing material GP-Silica was developed in collaboration with Glassomer GmbH, a pioneer in room-temperature forming of glass based on silica nanocomposite technology. The photoresin GP-Silica is a composite of silica nanoparticles dispersed in a photocurable binder matrix that can be printed directly with Nanoscribe’s microfabrication systems. GP-Silica requires a two-step fabrication process:
First, the desired microstructures are printed from GP-Silica and unpolymerized material is washed away, resulting in the so-called green part. In a second step, the green part is thermally treated. Here, initially the polymerized binder matrix is removed at 600 °C, followed by a sintering process at 1,300 °C. During this step, the part shrinks in volume as the silica nanoparticles fuse, revealing a 3D microstructure of pure fused silica glass.
3D print glass
With GP-Silica, we introduced a new material class designed for 3D microfabrication. This new, inorganic print material features the excellent characteristics of silica glass, such as its high thermal and chemical stability. Combined with an optical transmission window that extends from 200 nm to the infrared region, the new material is an excellent candidate for imaging applications in life sciences, microfluidics, microreactors or micro-optics. Furthermore, the new printing material has a Young’s modulus about ten times higher than standard printing materials such as IP-Q, opening up new possibilities in the field of MEMS and material engineering.
Explore 3D printing of glass with GP-Silica
GP-Silica features and use
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Young’s modulus [GPa]1: 68.3
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Thermal stability [°C]: > 1,0002
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Refractive index at 589 nm, 20 °C: 1.458
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Lateral resolution [µm]3: 20
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Surface roughness Ra [nm]3: < 10
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Post-processing: Sintering
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Sintering shrinkage [Vol. %]: 27 (isometric)
1 Measured on 3D printed or UV-cured structures; results depend on the printing conditions and geometry
2 Glass transition temperature Tg
3 Structure and print parameter dependent
Glass Printing Explorer Set
The Glass Printing Explorer Set offers everything you need for printing freeform microstructures made of fused silica glass out of the box. The set includes the photoresin GP-Silica, silicon substrates, several print accessories and detailed processing instructions for a successful print. These instructions contain recommendations and notes on print job preparations, a preset of printing parameters for the Solution Set Large Features and detailed information about the thermal post-process.
A suitable sinter oven is needed for the thermal post-process. For ideal results, we recommend a tailored sinter oven model provided by a partner company. Please contact our sales experts regarding product details.
Content of Glass Printing Explorer Set
- GP-Silica
- Silicon substrates
- Print accessories
- Print and processing instructions
System requirements
- Nanoscribe Quantum X system or Photonics Professional GT+ /GT2
- Solution Set: Large Features
- Oven for thermal post-processing
High-res
3D printing
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Microfluidics
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Micromechanics & MEMS
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Materials engineering
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Laser fusion targets
High-res 3D biofabrication
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Life sciences
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Microneedles
Quantum X shape
High-resolution
3D printer
Quantum X bio
High-resolution
3D bioprinter
Interested in further
high-precision printing materials?
Nanoscribe’s photoresins are proven printing materials for high-precision 3D microfabrication based on Two-Photon Polymerization (2PP) and Two-Photon Grayscale Lithography (2GL®). The IP and IPX product lines presents a wide range of photoresins designed for nano-, micro-, and mesoscale structures. In addition, a variety of bioresins and nanocomposite material for glass printing are available.