Integrated 3D printing of transparency-on-demand glass microstructure

Glass is essential in optics and photonics due to its exceptional optical, mechanical, thermal, and chemical properties. Additive manufacturing has emerged as a novel method for fabricating complex glass elements in recent years, yet achieving locally controlled transparency in glass micro-objects remains a significant challenge. We present an innovative method, termed Transparency-on-Demand Glass Additive Manufacturing (TGAM), to control the transparency of 3D printed glass elements using polymeric silsesquioxane (PSQ) and two-photon polymerization (TPP). By precisely manipulating key parameters such as laser power, scanning speed, part thickness, and pyrolysis heating rate, we achieve the desired transparency levels. Our study reveals that monomer conversion during printing, structure thickness, and pyrolysis heating strategy significantly influence PSQ oxidation, resulting in varying transparency in the final glass product. This method enables the creation of high-precision, variable-transparency glass micro-components, providing a scalable and efficient solution for producing complex glass structures with tailored optical transparency. Our technique paves the way for integrated manufacturing of controllable-transparency glass micro-structures, unlocking new possibilities for advanced optical and photonic applications.