Properties of Photopolymer Part with Aligned Short Ferromagnetic Fibers

Photopolymer parts with short ferromagnetic fibers are fabricated by laser stereolithography. A magnetic field is applied to a liquid photopolymer that contains the short ferromagnetic fibers, with the axes of the short fibers aligned in the direction of the magnetic field. Then, the photopolymer is solidified with UV laser irradiation to get the desired shape. After fabricating the part, it is magnetized by applying magnetic field to it. When the magnetic field is applied in the direction of the aligned short fibers in the fabricated part, the residual magnetic flux density of the magnetized part in the direction of the aligned fibers becomes approximately twice that in the other directions. The magnetized part can be bent by applying an external magnetic field.