Bou Chakra Elie, Hannes Benjamin, Dilosquer Gilles, Mansfield Colin D, Cabrera Michel
Institut des Nanotechnologies de Lyon, UMR CNRS ECL INSA UCBL 5270, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1- Bâtiment Léon Brillouin, Villeurbanne Cedex, France.
Rev Sci Instrum. 2008 Jun;79(6):064102. doi: 10.1063/1.2936259.
An instrument for automated microcontact printing (microCP) on microscope slides is described. The movement of the stamp, which is actuated by a computer controlled pneumatic actuator, is precisely guided until it makes contact with the substrate. As a consequence, the absolute position of the microprinted patterns is reproducible over a series of substrates with 1 mum standard deviation. Exchange of substrates and stamps is a quick and simple procedure. This makes possible the microprinting of adjacent or superimposable patterns, with different products, in a reproducible manner. Furthermore, a novel approach is described for adjusting the load on the stamp during contact. Two adjustable screws are set up so that their length (with reference to the substrate holder) limits the stamp compression during contact. The load on the stamp is proportional to the stamp compression and from the experimental point of view, this is controlled by the operator adjusting the screws. This makes possible the microCP with stamps incorporating large surface features as well as stamps with isolated features raised on the surface. For proof of concept, automated microCP of a single parallelepiped polydimethylsiloxane feature, with a surface of 2 cm x 30 microm and a height of 25 mum, is demonstrated inside a microfluidic channel without roof collapse. A second example is provided with a single cross feature, possessing an overall surface of 140 x 140 microm(2) and a height of 14 microm. Potential applications of this versatile, inexpensive and compact instrument are discussed. The machine's potential for high throughput also makes it suitable for mass production applications.
本文介绍了一种用于在显微镜载玻片上进行自动微接触印刷（microCP）的仪器。由计算机控制的气动致动器驱动的印章移动被精确引导，直至其与基底接触。因此，微印刷图案的绝对位置在一系列基底上具有可重复性，标准偏差为1微米。基底和印章的更换过程快速且简单。这使得以可重复的方式用不同产品进行相邻或重叠图案的微印刷成为可能。此外，本文还描述了一种在接触过程中调节印章负载的新方法。设置了两个可调螺钉，使其长度（相对于基底支架）限制接触过程中的印章压缩量。印章上的负载与印章压缩量成正比，从实验角度来看，这由操作员通过调节螺钉来控制。这使得使用具有大表面特征的印章以及表面带有孤立特征的印章进行微接触印刷成为可能。为了验证概念，展示了在微流控通道内对单个平行六面体聚二甲基硅氧烷特征进行自动微接触印刷，该特征表面为2 cm×30微米，高度为25微米，且无顶部塌陷。第二个例子是一个单一的十字特征，其总面积为140×140微米²，高度为14微米。讨论了这种多功能、廉价且紧凑的仪器的潜在应用。该机器的高通量潜力也使其适用于大规模生产应用。
