Hybrid working stamps for high speed roll-to-roll nanoreplication with molded sol-gel relief on a metal backbone

A straight-forward fabrication process was developed for hybrid layered molds consisting of a flexible metal plate as a mechanical support covered with a sol-gel layer with a nanostructured surface relief. The bendable stamp was tested under high speed roll-to-roll (R2R) manufacturing condition. A sufficient stamp lifetime was found, since no structural degradation was observed after a continuous imprint of more than 40m. Thus, it is shown that hybrid molds are good and inexpensive alternatives to electroplated shims usually used in R2R embossing.