Patent ID: 7429345

Claim:
A process to form microstructures comprising: disposing a slurry comprising a mixture of a ceramic powder and a curable fugitive binder on a glass substrate patterned with a plurality of electrodes; shaping the slurry into a plurality of microstructures disposed on the substrate with a patterned mold by contacting the slurry with the patterned surface of the mold to fill indentations of the mold, the plurality of microstructures comprising alternating barrier portions and land portions with barrier surfaces and land surfaces respectively, each barrier portion and adjacent land portion joined by a curved portion having a curved surface extending from and substantially continuous with the land surface and the slurry of the land portions is contiguous with the barrier portions and curved portions; curing the curable fugitive binder to harden the slurry and to adhere the slurry to the substrate; removing the mold to leave green state microstructures of the slurry adhered to the glass substrate, the green state microstructures substantially replicating the patterned mold; applying a weight to a barrier end of at least one green state microstructure, wherein a portion of a bottom of the weight contacts a top corner of the barrier end; debinding and firing the green state microstructures to substantially burn out the fugitive binder and to sinter the ceramic powder to form ceramic microstructures; and removing the weight.