Development of Medical Micro Devices Based on Three-dimensinoal Membrane Structure

Abstract

Conventional microdevices are made of substrates having thicknesses relatively greater than the feature scale of the microfabricated components. In contrast, the microscale natural creatures are made of membranes, that are relatively thin compared to their feature size. Inspired by the fact, we have been developing 3-D microdevices composed of thin membranes. The small thickness of the membrane enhances transport between the inside of the device and its surroundings, and it also provides softness to the structure, enabling passive and active morphological changes. These characteristics of thin-membrane microdevices are suitable for biological and medical applications. In this talk, 3-D microfabrication process of thin polymer membrane and its application to biomedical devices are presented.