Etching is traditionally the process of using strong acid or mordant to cut into the unprotected parts of a metal surface to

create a design in intaglio (incised) in the metal.[1] In modern manufacturing, other chemicals may be used on other types of
material. As a method of printmaking, it is, along with engraving, the most important technique for old master prints, and
remains in wide use today. In a number of modern variants such as microfabrication etching and photochemical milling it is a
crucial technique in much modern technology, including circuit boards.
In traditional pure etching, a metal (usually copper, zinc or steel) plate is covered with a waxy ground which is resistant to
acid.[2] The artist then scratches off the ground with a pointed etching needle [3] where he or she wants a line to appear in the
finished piece, so exposing the bare metal. The choppe, a tool with a slanted oval section, is also used for "swelling"
lines.[4] The plate is then dipped in a bath of acid, technically called the mordant (French for "biting") or etchant, or has acid
washed over it.[5]The acid "bites" into the metal (it dissolves part of the metal) where it is exposed, leaving behind lines sunk
into the plate. The remaining ground is then cleaned off the plate. The plate is inked all over, and then the ink wiped off the
surface, leaving only the ink in the etched lines.
The plate is then put through a high-pressure printing press together with a sheet of paper (often moistened to soften
it).[6] The paper picks up the ink from the etched lines, making a print. The process can be repeated many times; typically
several hundred impressions (copies) could be printed before the plate shows much sign of wear. The work on the plate can
also be added to by repeating the whole process; this creates an etching which exists in more than one state.

Origin
Etching by goldsmiths and other metal-workers in order to decorate metal items such as guns, armour, cups and plates has been known in
Europe since the Middle Ages at least, and may go back to antiquity. The elaborate decoration of armour, in Germany at least, was an art
probably imported from Italy around the end of the 15th centurylittle earlier than the birth of etching as a printmaking technique.

Selection of early etched printing plates from the British Museum

The process as applied to printmaking is believed to have been invented by Daniel Hopfer (circa 14701536) of Augsburg, Germany. Hopfer
was a craftsman who decorated armour in this way, and applied the method to printmaking, using iron plates (many of which still exist). Apart
from his prints, there are two proven examples of his work on armour: a shield from 1536 now in the Real Armeria of Madrid and a sword in
the Germanisches Nationalmuseum of Nuremberg. An Augsburg horse armour in the German Historical Museum, Berlin, dating to between
1512 and 1515, is decorated with motifs from Hopfer's etchings and woodcuts, but this is no evidence that Hopfer himself worked on it, as his
decorative prints were largely produced as patterns for other craftsmen in various media.
The switch to copper plates was probably made in Italy, and thereafter etching soon came to challenge engraving as the most popular
medium for artists in printmaking. Its great advantage was that, unlike engraving where the difficult technique for using the burin requires
special skill in metalworking, the basic technique for creating the image on the plate in etching is relatively easy to learn for an artist trained in
drawing. On the other hand, the handling of the ground and acid need skill and experience, and are not without health and safety risks, as
well as the risk of a ruined plate.
Prior to 1100 AD, the New World Hohokam independently utilized the technique of acid etching in marine shell designs.[7]

A waxy acid-resist, known as a ground, is applied to a metal plate, most often copper or zinc but steel plate is another medium with different
qualities. There are two common types of ground: hard ground and soft ground.
Hard ground can be applied in two ways. Solid hard ground comes in a hard waxy block. To apply hard ground of this variety, the plate to be
etched is placed upon a hot-plate (set at 70 degrees C), a kind of metal worktop that is heated up. The plate heats up and the ground is
applied by hand, melting onto the plate as it is applied. The ground is spread over the plate as evenly as possible using a roller. Once applied
the etching plate is removed from the hot-plate and allowed to cool which hardens the ground.
After the ground has hardened the artist "smokes" the plate, classically with 3 beeswax tapers, applying the flame to the plate to darken the
ground and make it easier to see what parts of the plate are exposed. Smoking not only darkens the plate but adds a small amount of wax.
Afterwards the artist uses a sharp tool to scratch into the ground, exposing the metal.
Relief etching by William Blake, frontispiece to America a Prophecy(Copy A, printed 1795)

Landscape under Trees, etching by Paula Modersohn-Becker, c. 1902

The second way to apply hard ground is by liquid hard ground. This comes in a can and is applied with a brush upon the plate to be etched.
Exposed to air the hard ground will harden. Some printmakers use oil/tar based asphaltum[9] or bitumen as hard ground, although often
bitumen is used to protect steel plates from rust and copper plates from aging.
Soft ground also comes in liquid form and is allowed to dry but it does not dry hard like hard ground and is impressionable. After the soft
ground has dried the printmaker may apply materials such as leaves, objects, hand prints and so on which will penetrate the soft ground and
expose the plate underneath.
The ground can also be applied in a fine mist, using powdered rosin or spraypaint. This process is called aquatint, and allows for the creation
of tones, shadows, and solid areas of color.
The design is then drawn (in reverse) with an etching-needle or choppe. An "echoppe" point can be made from an ordinary tempered steel
etching needle, by grinding the point back on a carborundum stone, at a 4560 degree angle. The "echoppe" works on the same principle
that makes a fountain pen's line more attractive than a ballpoint's: The slight swelling variation caused by the natural movement of the hand
"warms up" the line, and although hardly noticeable in any individual line, has a very attractive overall effect on the finished plate. It can be
drawn with in the same way as an ordinary needle.
The plate is then completely submerged in a solution that eats away at the exposed metal. Ferric chloride may be used for etching copper or
zinc plates, whereas nitric acid may be used for etching zinc or steel plates. Typical solutions are 1 part FeCl3 to 1 part water and 1 part nitric
to 3 parts water. The strength of the acid determines the speed of the etching process.

The etching process is known as biting (see also spit-biting below).

The waxy resist prevents the acid from biting the parts of the plate which have been covered.
The longer the plate remains in the acid the deeper the "bites" become.

Example of etching

During the etching process the printmaker uses a bird feather or similar item to wave away bubbles and detritus produced by the dissolving
process, from the surface of the plate, or the plate may be periodically lifted from the acid bath. If a bubble is allowed to remain on the plate
then it will stop the acid biting into the plate where the bubble touches it. Zinc produces more bubbles much more rapidly than copper and
steel and some artists use this to produce interesting round bubble-like circles within their prints for a Milky Way effect.
The detritus is powdery dissolved metal that fills the etched grooves and can also block the acid from biting evenly into the exposed plate
surfaces. Another way to remove detritus from a plate is to place the plate to be etched face down within the acid upon plasticine balls or
marbles, although the drawback of this technique is the exposure to bubbles and the inability to remove them readily.
For aquatinting a printmaker will often use a test strip of metal about a centimetre to three centimetres wide. The strip will be dipped into the
acid for a specific number of minutes or seconds. The metal strip will then be removed and the acid washed off with water. Part of the strip
will be covered in ground and then the strip is redipped into the acid and the process repeated. The ground will then be removed from the
strip and the strip inked up and printed. This will show the printmaker the different degrees or depths of the etch, and therefore the strength
of the ink color, based upon how long the plate is left in the acid.
The plate is removed from the acid and washed over with water to remove the acid. The ground is removed with a solvent such
as turpentine. Turpentine is often removed from the plate using methylated spirits since turpentine is greasy and can affect the application of
ink and the printing of the plate.
Spit-biting is a process whereby the printmaker will apply acid to a plate with a brush in certain areas of the plate. The plate may be
aquatinted for this purpose or exposed directly to the acid. The process is known as "spit"-biting due to the use of saliva once used as a
medium to dilute the acid, although gum arabic or water are now commonly used.

Pornocrates by Flicien Rops. Etching and aquatint

A piece of matte board, a plastic "card", or a wad of cloth is often used to push the ink into the incised lines. The surface is wiped clean with
a piece of stiff fabric known as tarlatan and then wiped with newsprint paper; some printmakers prefer to use the blade part of their hand or
palm at the base of their thumb. The wiping leaves ink in the incisions. You may also use a folded piece of organza silk to do the final wipe. If
copper or zinc plates are used, then the plate surface is left very clean and therefore white in the print. If steel plate is used, then the plate's
natural tooth gives the print a grey background similar to the effects of aquatinting. As a result, steel plates do not need aquatinting as
gradual exposure of the plate via successive dips into acid will produce the same result.
A damp piece of paper is placed over the plate and it is run through the press.
Nontoxic etching
Growing concerns about the health effects of acids and solvents[10][11] led to the development of less toxic etching methods[12] in the late 20th
century. An early innovation was the use of floor wax as a hard ground for coating the plate. Others, such as printmakers Mark Zaffron and
Keith Howard, developed systems using acrylic polymers as a ground and ferric chloride for etching. The polymers are removed with sodium
carbonate (washing soda) solution, rather than solvents. When used for etching, ferric chloride does not produce a corrosive gas, as acids
do, thus eliminating another danger of traditional etching.
The traditional aquatint, which uses either powdered rosin or enamel spray paint, is replaced with an airbrush application of the acrylic
polymer hard ground. Again, no solvents are needed beyond the soda ash solution, though a ventilation hood is needed due to acrylic
particulates from the air brush spray.
The traditional soft ground, requiring solvents for removal from the plate, is replaced with water-based relief printing ink. The ink receives
impressions like traditional soft ground, resists the ferric chloride etchant, yet can be cleaned up with warm water and either soda ash
solution or ammonia.
Anodic etching has been used in industrial processes for over a century. The etching power is a source of direct current. The item to be
etched (anode) is connected to its positive pole. A receiver plate (cathode) is connected to its negative pole. Both, spaced slightly apart, are
immersed in a suitable aqueous solution of a suitable electrolyte. The current pushes the metal out from the anode into solution and deposits
it as metal on the cathode. Shortly before 1990, two groups working independently[13][14] developed different ways of applying it to creating
intaglio printing plates.
In the patented[15][16] Electroetch system, invented by Marion and Omri Behr, in contrast to certain nontoxic etching methods, an etched plate
can be reworked as often as the artist desires[17][18][19][20] The system uses voltages below 2 volts which exposes the uneven metal crystals in
the etched areas resulting in superior ink retention and printed image appearance of quality equivalent to traditional acid methods. With
polarity reversed the low voltage provides a simpler method of making mezzotint plates as well as the "steel facing"[21] copper plates.
Some of the earliest printmaking workshops experimenting with, developing and promoting nontoxic techniques include Grafisk
Eksperimentarium, in Copenhagen, Denmark, Edinburgh Printmakers, in Scotland, and New Grounds Print Workshop, in Albuquerque, New
Mexico.

Photo-etching

Portrait of Luca Giordano, 18th century

Main article: Photochemical machining

Light sensitive polymer plates allow for photorealistic etchings. A photo-sensitive coating is applied to the plate by either the plate supplier or
the artist. Light is projected onto the plate as a negative image to expose it. Photopolymer plates are either washed in hot water or under
other chemicals according to the plate manufacturers' instructions. Areas of the photo-etch image may be stopped-out before etching to
exclude them from the final image on the plate, or removed or lightened by scraping and burnishing once the plate has been etched. Once
the photo-etching process is complete, the plate can be worked further as a normal intaglio plate, using drypoint, further etching, engraving,
etc. The final result is an intaglio plate which is printed like any other.
Types of metal plates
Copper is a traditional metal, and is still preferred, for etching, as it bites evenly, holds texture well, and does not distort the color of the ink
when wiped. Zinc is cheaper than copper, so preferable for beginners, but it does not bite as cleanly as copper does, and it alters some
colors of ink. Steel is growing in popularity as an etching substrate. Increases in the prices of copper and zinc have steered steel to an
acceptable alternative. The line quality of steel is less fine than copper, but finer than zinc. Steel has a natural and rich aquatint.
The type of metal used for the plate impacts the number of prints the plate will produce. The firm pressure of the printing press slowly rubs
out the finer details of the image with every pass-through. With relatively soft copper, for example, the etching details will begin to wear very
quickly, some copper plates show extreme wear after only ten prints. Steel, on the other hand, is incredibly durable. This wearing out of the
image over time is one of the reasons etched prints created early in a numbered series tend to be valued more highly. An artist thus takes
the total number of prints he or she wishes to produce into account whenever choosing the metal.

Industrial uses[edit]
Main article: Chemical milling

See also: Etching (microfabrication)

Etching is also used in the manufacturing of printed circuit boards and semiconductor devices, and in the preparation of metallic specimens
for microscopic observation.

Controlling the acid's effects[edit]

There are many ways for the printmaker to control the acid's effects.

Hard grounds[edit]

Young Girl in cafe with street-view, etching by Lesser Ury, 1924

Most typically, the surface of the plate is covered in a hard, waxy 'ground' that resists acid. The printmaker then scratches through the ground
with a sharp point, exposing lines of metal which the mordant acid attacks.
Example of sugar lift and spit bite effect

Aquatint[edit]
Aquatint is a variation in which particulate resin is evenly distributed on the plate, then heated to form a screen ground of uniform, but less
than perfect, density. After etching, any exposed surface will result in a roughened (i.e., darkened) surface. Areas that are to be light in the
final print are protected by varnishing between acid baths. Successive turns of varnishing and placing the plate in acid create areas of tone
difficult or impossible to achieve by drawing through a wax ground.

Sugar lift[edit]
Here designs in a syrupy solution of sugar or Camp Coffee are painted onto the metal surface prior to it being coated in a liquid etching
ground or 'stop out' varnish. When later the plate is placed in hot water the sugar dissolves and lifts off leaving the image. The plate can then
be etched.

Spit bite[edit]
A mixture of nitric acid and Gum Arabic (or almost never saliva) which can be dripped, spattered or painted onto a metal surface giving
interesting results. A mixture of nitric acid and rosin can also be used.

Printing[edit]

Cylinder press for printing etchings

Printing the plate is done by covering the surface with printing ink, then rubbing the ink off the surface with tarlatan cloth or newsprint, leaving
ink in the roughened areas and lines. Damp paper is placed on the plate, and both are run through a printing press; the pressure forces the
paper into contact with the ink, transferring the image (c.f., chine-coll). Unfortunately, the pressure also subtly degrades the image in the
plate, smoothing the roughened areas and closing the lines; a copper plate is good for, at most, a few hundred printings of a strongly etched
imaged before the degradation is considered too great by the artist. At that point, the artist can manually restore the plate by re-etching it,
essentially putting ground back on and retracing their lines; alternatively, plates can be electro-plated before printing with a harder metal to
preserve the surface. Zinc is also used, because as a softer metal, etching times are shorter; however, that softness also leads to faster
degradation of the image in the press.
Faults[edit]

Example of foul bite in acid etching

Foul-bite or "over-biting" is common in etching, and is the effect of minuscule amounts of acid leaking through the ground to create minor
pitting and burning on the surface. This incidental roughening may be removed by smoothing and polishing the surface, but artists often
leave faux-bite, or deliberately court it by handling the plate roughly, because it is viewed as a desirable mark of the process.

"Etchings" euphemism[edit]
The phrase "Want to come up and see my etchings?" is a romantic euphemism by which a person entices someone to come back to their
place with an offer to look at something artistic, but with ulterior motives. The phrase is a corruption of some phrases in a novel by Horatio
Alger, Jr. called The Erie Train Boy, which was first published in 1891. Alger was an immensely popular author in the 19th century
especially with young peopleand his books were widely quoted. In chapter XXII of the book, a woman writes to her boyfriend, "I have a
new collection of etchings that I want to show you. Won't you name an evening when you will call, as I want to be certain to be at home when
you really do come." The boyfriend then writes back "I shall no doubt find pleasure in examining the etchings which you hold out as an
inducement to call."
This was referenced in a 1929 James Thurber cartoon in which a man tells a woman in a building lobby: "You wait here and I'll bring the
etchings down".[22] It was also referenced in Dashiell Hammett's 1934 novel The Thin Man, in which the narrator answers his wife asking him
about a lady he had wandered off with by saying: "She just wanted to show me some French etchings."[23]
The phrase was given new popularity in 1937: in a well publicized case, violinist David Rubinoff was accused of inviting a young woman to
his hotel room to view some French etchings, but instead seducing her.
As early as 1895, Hjalmar Sderberg used the reference in his "decadent" dbut novel Delusions (swe: Frvillelser), when he lets the dandy
Johannes Hall lure the main character's younger sister Greta into his room under the pretence that they browse through his etchings and
engravings (e.g., Die Snde by Franz Stuck).[24]