MRI: Acquisition of a Nanoscale 3D printer for Fundamental and Applied Research at Wayne State University and Southeast Michigan

通过3D打印进行设备的快速原型制作已成为科学和工程研究中不可或缺的工具;然而，传统仪器无法在短周转时间内创建定制的微米和纳米级结构。 该项目旨在通过收购Nanoscribe Photonic Professional GT 2来加速密歇根州东南部多元化研究团队的研究，这是一种最先进的纳米级3D打印和无掩模光刻系统，将成为密歇根州下半岛的首个此类系统。该仪器将由韦恩州立大学（WSU）和其他六所地区大学的七个系的十八名教师调查员使用。GT 2将被安置在WSU纳米制造设施（nFab）中，这是一个5，000平方英尺的洁净室，提供100级空气过滤以减少缺陷，过滤照明，以及用于打印前和打印后过程的其他仪器。 管理计划力求通过保持适度的收费和远程服务模式，最大限度地扩大用户群。 GT 2将加速WSU的微米和纳米制造能力，同时加强其在密歇根州东南部设备制造中心区域网络中的作用。 在其15年的使用寿命中，我们预计该仪器将被400名研究生，400名本科生和80名博士后用于研究，其中包括女性和代表性不足的学生和初级学者。 它将帮助培训另外1 000名学生，将快速纳米级原型制作纳入研究生和本科生关于微制造和设计的课程。在制造业占经济总量20%的密歇根州，亲身接触3D CAD和微细加工对于劳动力培训至关重要。六所合作大学中有三所主要是本科院校，为7，500名工程专业学生提供服务。 最后，GT 2将通过WSU STEM创新学习中心，底特律地区科学博览会项目和K-12学生的年度STEM日促进社区外展。GT 2将补充WSU的其他NSF资助的光学，电子和原子力显微镜，为底特律社区提供深入，动手理解微设计工作流程。Nanoscribe Photonic Professional GT 2使用双光子聚合（2 PP）在各种材料中打印分辨率为200 nm的3D结构。三种关键的仪器能力将克服研究人员面临的挑战。GT2：（1）能够以比传统3D打印机小1000倍的长度尺度制造具有不受约束几何形状的3D结构，从而能够在200 nm-100 µm长度尺度下系统研究和开发物理学;（2）与各种定制树脂兼容，以支持各种项目，包括纳米颗粒嵌入或可生物降解材料;以及（3）实现实验装置设计的快速迭代，这是加速假设驱动和应用研究的关键。 GT 2将在3个科学方向上实现协同进步。1)胶体组装将解决3D结构如何控制生物膜，纳米胶体和液滴在200 nm至100 µm的长度尺度下组装的未回答问题。2)确定性孔隙率将试图了解几何控制，亚微米至微米介观结构如何改变本体聚合物特性，解决当代问题，如固态电池电极中的体积膨胀，以及分子过滤中孔隙率梯度的作用。3)3D MEMS将设计3D结构，以扩展或改善微传感器和致动器的性能，为行星地震仪，体内微型机器人，图像激活细胞分选器和光学信号处理器提供新的方法。三个重点内的成果将推动各种应用的知识，包括能量存储，芯片实验室，组织工程，神经接口，胶体制造，药物输送，机器人，传感器和超材料。项目还将加强2 PP制造领域，包括CAD设计的机器学习优化，以及通过干涉测量法表征2 PP光学元件。成功与否将通过出版物以及向研究界传播的3D CAD设计的数量和多样性进行评估。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Rapid prototyping of devices by 3D printing has become an indispensable tool in science and engineering research; however, conventional instruments are unable to create custom micro- and nanoscale structures with short turnaround times. This project seeks to accelerate research for a diverse team of investigators in southeast Michigan by acquiring a Nanoscribe Photonic Professional GT2, a state-of-the-art nanoscale 3D printing and maskless lithography system that will be the first of its kind in Michigan’s lower peninsula. The instrument will be used by eighteen faculty investigators across seven departments at Wayne State University (WSU) and six other regional universities. The GT2 will be housed at the WSU Nanofabrication Facility (nFab), a 5,000 sqft clean room that provides class 100 air filtration to reduce defects, filtered lighting, and access to other instruments for pre- and post-print processes. The management plan seeks to maximize the user base by maintaining modest fees and a remote service model. The GT2 will accelerate the micro- and nanofabrication capabilities at WSU while strengthening its role in the regional network of device manufacturing hubs in southeast Michigan. Over its 15-year lifespan, we anticipate the instrument will be used in research by 400 graduate students, 400 undergraduates, and 80 postdocs, including women and underrepresented students and junior scholars. It will help train 1,000 additional students by incorporating rapid nanoscale prototyping into graduate and undergraduate courses on microfabrication and design. Hands-on exposure to 3D CAD and microfabrication is critical to workforce training in Michigan, where manufacturing makes up 20% of the total economy. Three of six partner universities are primarily undergraduate institutions, serving 7,500 engineering students. Lastly, the GT2 will facilitate community outreach through the WSU STEM Innovation Learning Center, Detroit-area science fair projects, and the annual STEM day for K-12 students. The GT2 will complement WSU’s other NSF-funded optical, electron, and atomic force microscopes to provide an in-depth, hands-on understanding of micro design workflow to the Detroit community. The Nanoscribe Photonic Professional GT2 uses 2-photon polymerization (2PP) to print 3D structures with a resolution of 200 nm in a variety of materials. Three key instrument capabilities will overcome challenges faced by researchers. The GT2: (1) enables fabrication of 3D structures with unconstrained geometries at 1000X smaller length scales than conventional 3D printers, enabling systematic studies and exploitation of physics at 200 nm-100 µm length scales; (2) is compatible with a variety of custom resins to support a diversity of projects, including nanoparticle embedded or biodegradable materials; and (3) enables rapid iteration on experimental device designs, which is key to accelerating both hypothesis-driven and applied research. The GT2 will enable synergistic advances in 3 scientific thrusts. 1) Colloidal assembly will address unanswered questions of how 3D structures control the assembly of biomembranes, nanocolloids, and droplets at length scales from 200 nm to 100 µm. 2) Deterministic porosity will seek to understand how geometrically controlled, sub-µm to µm mesostructures change bulk polymer properties, addressing contemporary issues such as the volume expansion in solid-state battery electrodes, and the role of porosity gradients in molecular filtration. 3) 3D MEMS will engineer 3D structures to extend or improve the performance of microsensors and actuators, contributing novel approaches for planetary seismometers, in-vivo microrobots, image-activated cell sorters, and optical signal processors. Outcomes within three thrusts will advance knowledge in diverse applications including energy storage, lab on a chip, tissue engineering, neural interfaces, colloidal manufacturing, drug delivery, robotics, sensors, and metamaterials. Projects will also enhance the field of 2PP fabrication, including machine-learning optimization of CAD designs, and characterization of 2PP optical components by interferometry. Success will be evaluated by publications and the number and diversity of 3D CAD designs disseminated to the research community.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.