Method for manufacturing a disk drive microactuator that includes a piezoelectric element and a peripheral encapsulation layer

A method of manufacturing microactuators for use in a disk drive, the method comprising the acts of:

• (a) providing a sheet of a piezoelectric material having a first electrically conductive layer on a first side of the sheet;
• (b) cutting the sheet to form a plurality of piezoelectric elements, each of the piezoelectric elements including a first element side with a portion of the first electrically conductive layer, each first element side including a peripheral portion and an exposed portion disposed interior to the peripheral portion;
• and
• (c) forming an encapsulation layer over the peripheral portion and not over the exposed portion of at least one of the first element sides, the encapsulation layer comprising a material of lesser electrical conductivity than the first electrically conductive layer, wherein the act of forming includes
• (i) providing a first fixture including a fixture base and a plurality of protrusions extending from the fixture base, each protrusion including a distal support surface that is approximately the same size as an exposed portion of a respective one of the first element sides;
• and
• (ii) positioning each of the piezoelectric elements upon a respective distal support surface of the first fixture with the respective exposed portion of a respective first element side upon the distal support surface;
• (iii) providing a second fixture including a fixture base and a plurality of protrusions extending from the fixture base, each protrusion including a distal support surface that is approximately the same size as an exposed portion of a respective one of the second element sides, and positioning each of the piezoelectric elements upon a respective distal support surface of the second fixture with the respective exposed portion of a respective second element side upon the distal support surface;
• and
• iv) using a first alignment comb to position the piezoelectric elements with respect to the second fixture, the first alignment comb including a plurality of first tines, the piezoelectric elements being positioned between respective ones of the first tines.