Microfabrication
“Microfabricationor micromanufacturing are the terms to describe processes of fabrication of miniature structures, of micrometre sizes and smaller. Historically the earliest micromanufacturing was used for semiconductor devices in integrated circuit fabrication and these processes have been covered by the term "semiconductor device fabrication," "semiconductor manufacturing," etc. Practical advances in microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) and other nanotechnology, where the technologies from IC fabrication are being re-used, adapted or extended have led to the extension of the scope and techniques of microfabrication.”
(Wikipedia, Microfabrication, 12/4/2010)
3D Printing
Fabrication
Forced Assembly Coextrusion
Imprinting
Lithography
Self Assembly
Templating
Recent US Patents
10/12/2010
7,811,501
Mold, method of producing the mold, and method of producing molded article using the mold
Nishida et al of the Kitakyushu Foundation, Japan has produced a conductive glass micromold with nanometer structures by irradiating a a conductive vanadate glass containing vanadium pentoxide. This material avoids the problem of electrostatic charging. (RDC 1/7/2011)
7,811,484
Apparatus for producing three-dimensional structure
Okamoto and Yano of Canon, Japan has formed a three dimensional structure with a structure finer than visible wavelengths by generating a light having a photonic energy of intensity a fraction of the exciting light sources of light-source groups arranged regularly in a two-dimensional arrangement to cause the photoreaction at and around the light-concentrating point to form a periodic structure. (RDC 1/7/2011)
Recent Journal Articles
12/17/2010
Microfluidic channels fabricated on mesoporous electrospun fiber mats: A facile route to microfluidic chips
( 89–95)Journal of Polymer Science B: Polymer Physics 49, #2 (2011)
Jo et al prepared microfluidic channels filled with electrospun functional fibers. Patterned elastic molds were in tight contact with electrospun fiber mats without any leak of the analyte solution. A microfluidic protein chip was produced for selectively purifying histidine-tagged proteins. Highly mesoporous nitrilotriacetic acid-functionalized polystyrene (PS-NTA) fibers were produced by taking advantage of interpenetrating phase separation between PS and PEO during electrospinning. (RDC 12/21/2010)
10/29/2010
Forced assembly and mixing of melts via planar polymer micro-mixing
(3147-3155) Polymer 51 #14 (2010)
Moon and Migler of the National Institute Standards and Technology, Maryland developed a method for the forced assembly of immiscible polymers into targeted structures via development of a planar polymer micro-mixer (PPMM). The PPMM drives streams of molten polymer through mixing chambers, which are fabricated from metal shims that contain flow channels. By stacking the shims, complex 3D mixing flows can be generated. Multi-layers and coaxial cylinders were formed in the first five mixing units, beyond that that interfacial tension and non-ideal flow tends to force the creation of mixed domain/matrix structures. (RDC 12/22/2010).