Methods and Apparatus for Monitoring Deposition Quality During Conformable Contact Mask Plating Operations

An electrochemical fabrication process for producing a three-dimensional structure, the process comprising:

• (A) selectively depositing at least at least one of a first structural material or a first sacrificial material to form a portion of a first layer on a substrate, wherein the substrate may comprise previously deposited material;
• (B) depositing the other of the first structural material or the first sacrificial material to form another portion of the first layer;
• (C) forming a plurality of layers, each comprising at least one sacrificial material, which may or may not be different from the first sacrificial material, and at least one structural material, which may or may not be different from the first structural material, such that successive layers are formed adjacent to and adhered to previously formed layers, wherein said forming comprises repeating (A) and (B) a plurality of times;
• wherein monitoring of an electrical parameter during deposition, manual visual inspection of deposited material, or automatic visual inspection of deposited material occurs to detect if a problem occurred;
• and
• wherein at least one of the first or plurality of layers is at least partially removed after at least partial formation of the at least one layer and then the at least one layer is reformed if the problem is detected.