Disclosed is a support member for supporting a wafer during a heat treatment of the wafer. The support member includes a support plate and spacers and retaining elements carried by the support plate. The spacers serve to maintain a gap between the support plate and the wafer. The retaining elements serve to prevent the wafer from moving horizontally. The support plate may be made of silicon, quartz or silicon carbide. The spacers and the retaining elements may be fixed to the support plate by bayonet-type connections.

Disclosed is a support member for supporting a wafer during a heat treatment of the wafer. The support member includes a support plate and spacers and retaining elements carried by the support plate. The spacers serve to maintain a gap between the support plate and the wafer. The retaining elements serve to prevent the wafer from moving horizontally. The support plate may be made of silicon, quartz or silicon carbide. The spacers and the retaining elements may be fixed to the support plate by bayonet-type connections.

A method for manufacturing an external component of a watch, of a fashion item or of a jewellery item, including depositing an inner layer on all or part of the surface of an inner face of a substrate made of a transparent material, localised ablation of the inner layer, so as to conserve a part of the inner layer on a first portion of the inner face f the substrate, the ablation being performed so as to form at least one pocket opening onto a second portion of the inner face of the substrate and so as to structure the second portion of the inner fa of the substrate, treating the surface of the inner layer and of the second portion of the inner face of the substrate.

A watch component includes a substrate including a first region where a plurality of first recesses is formed in a surface, and a second region where a plurality of second recesses is formed in the surface, and a multilayer film covering at least a part of the first region and the second region. In a cross-sectional view obtained by cutting the substrate in a thickness direction, the plurality of first recesses is defined by a first side, and a second side tilted with respect to the first side and being in contact with the first side at an end portion. In the cross-sectional view, the plurality of second recesses is defined by a third side, and a fourth side tilted with respect to the third side and being in contact with the third side at an end portion. In the cross-sectional view, an angle of an inclination of the second side with respect to a direction orthogonal to the thickness direction of the substrate and an angle of an inclination of the fourth side with respect to the direction orthogonal to the thickness direction of the substrate are different from each other. In plan view as viewed from the thickness direction of the substrate, the first region and the second region have a value of a brightness L* in a L*a*b* color space of 5 or greater and 20 or less.

A method including obtaining an at least partially transparent object (1), providing a mask (6) defining at least one opening (8) wherein the contour corresponds to a profile of the anti-counterfeit marking to be structured, the mask (6) covering a surface of the at least partially transparent object (1) at the areas not to be structured, structuring the anti-counterfeit marking by bombarding the at least partially transparent object (1) by an ion beam (14) through the at least one opening (8) of the mask (6), the mechanical properties of the mask (6) being sufficient to prevent the ions of the ion beam (14) from etching the surface of the at least partially transparent object (1) at the areas where this surface is covered by the mask (6), removing the mask (6), and placing the at least partially transparent object (1) in a bath (16) at alkaline pH.

A manufacturing method includes a first repeating step of irradiating a base material with a pulse laser, having a spot diameter S, while relatively moving a laser head and the base material in a first direction, moving the laser head by a predetermined pitch width P in a second direction that intersects the first direction, and repeating irradiation by the pulse laser along the first direction and movement of the laser head in the second direction, and a second repeating step of irradiating the base material with the pulse laser while relatively moving the laser head and the base material in the second direction, moving the laser head by the pitch width in the first direction, and repeating irradiation by the pulse laser along the second direction and movement of the laser head in the first direction, wherein S<P<100 ?m.

A dial for a timepiece, preferably a watch, the dial being provided with a relief portion which is made as an assembly of pieces on different levels, juxtaposed on a base, such that the relief portion is formed by the upper surfaces of the pieces. A method for manufacturing the dial with several separate pieces, the upper surfaces of the pieces being subjected to a polishing step and/or possibly an enamelling step. The pieces are then cut along a defined contour and then assembled edge-to-edge on a base, so as to create the relief portion.

Disclosed are a mold assembly for making alkali metal wax packets, a method for preparing same, and a method for using same. The mold assembly comprises a silicon substrate (10), the silicon substrate (10) comprising a mold isolator (11) at the edge of the silicon substrate (10) and a silicon substrate central portion (18). The upper surface of the silicon substrate central portion (18) is indented to form a plurality of wax packet receiving cavities (12). A cavity isolator (13) locates between adjacent wax packet receiving cavities (12). A release sacrificial layer (15) is formed on the upper surface of the silicon substrate (10), and a paraffin layer (16) is formed on the upper surface of the release sacrificial layer (15) away from the silicon substrate (10). Cavities (121) for containing alkali metal are formed on a side of the paraffin layer (16) away from the release sacrificial layer (15). The mold isolator (11) is provided with corrosion release holes (14). The mold assembly can reliably and controllably achieve batch production of uniform alkali metal wax packet arrays and is completely compatible with MEMS and microelectronic processes, with simple processes that can be easily implemented and high operability. The wax packet mold assembly can be reused, such that wasting of raw materials can be avoided, and the cost of batch production can be effectively reduced.

Disclosed herein are devices, systems, and methods for fabricating alkali vapor cells. The methods disclosed herein comprise depositing a fluid into a reservoir of a device, the device comprising: a reservoir, a set of receptacles, and a set of conduits fluidly connecting each of the receptacles to the reservoir; such that, when a fluid is placed in the reservoir, the fluid flows to each of the receptacles via capillary action. Also disclosed herein are methods comprising flowing a fluid from an inlet to an outlet of a lumen of a main conduit of a device, the device further comprising a set of receptacles, each of the receptacles being in fluid communication with the lumen of the main conduit; such that, when a fluid flows from the inlet to the outlet through the lumen of the main conduit, the fluid further flows into each of the receptacles via capillary action.

A method that prints a functional element on a surface of a receiving area of a timepiece component of a timepiece contributing to regulating the rate of this timepiece includes preparing a solution containing a material constituting the functional element and depositing the prepared solution onto the surface of the receiving area. Specific properties of the solution are defined as a function of preparation criteria and include at least one structural modification feature of the timepiece component, at least one construction feature of the functional element on the receiving area, at least one structural feature of the material to be applied to the receiving area, and at least one feature of the receiving area of the component.