Open AccessFreeform multiphoton excited microfabrication for biological applications using a rapid prototyping CAD-based approach
Author(s) -
Lawrence P. Cunningham,
Matthew P. Veilleux,
Paul J. Campagnola
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
optics express
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.394
H-Index - 271
ISSN - 1094-4087
DOI - 10.1364/oe.14.008613
Subject(s) - microfabrication , rapid prototyping , microfluidics , fabrication , materials science , computer aided design , computer science , nanotechnology , cad , software , engineering drawing , engineering , medicine , alternative medicine , pathology , composite material , programming language , operating system
Multiphoton excited polymerization has attracted increasing attention as a powerful 3 dimensional nano/microfabrication tool. The nonlinear excitation confines the fabrication region to the focal volume allowing the potential to achieve freeform fabrication with submicron capabilities. We report the adaptation and use of a computer aided design (CAD) approach, based on rapid prototyping software, which exploits this potential for fabricating with protein and polymers in biologically compatible aqueous environments. 3D structures are drawn in the STL format creating a solid model that can be sliced, where the individual sections are then serially fabricated without overwriting previous layers. The method is shown for potential biological applications including microfluidics, cell entrapment, and tissue engineering.