MRI: Acquisition of 3-D Micromanufacturing Instruments for Bioengineering Research at Drexel University

这个项目的目标是通过提供共享的3-D微型制造仪器来提高德雷克塞尔大学生物工程研究和培训的质量并扩大其范围。这项提议寻求获得两种互补的3-D微型制造设备：微型立体光刻系统和准分子激光消融系统。微立体印刷是一种附加的三维打印技术，可以通过逐层固化的过程建立复杂的微结构，而准分子激光烧蚀是一种减法激光加工技术，可以用于由各种材料如塑料、玻璃、金属、陶瓷和半导体制成的非平面结构。生物传感器和单芯片实验室系统需要多层3-D体系结构来有效地集成和封装多个组件。神经科学和外科工程需要利用精确定义的3-D微结构的多功能神经探头和工具。传统的微制造技术如光刻和软光刻是有用的，但它们仅限于二维制造，不能产生生物工程研究活动中经常需要的复杂的三维结构。缺乏通用的3-D微型制造工具阻碍了德雷克塞尔大学的许多生物工程研究项目。所需的3-D微制造仪器将满足这一需求，并极大地提高质量和扩大生物工程研究和培训活动的范围，特别是在生物反应器、体外组织建模、组织工程、生物传感器、微流体、芯片实验室、生物力学、生物物理学、神经科学和外科工程等领域。广泛影响与现有的2-D微制造设施相结合，所需的3-D微制造仪器将为德雷塞尔大学和大费城地区的众多研究活动提供强大而独特的微制造基础设施。预计来自5个系的至少10名教职员工和20名研究生和博士后研究人员将成为所需仪器的活跃用户。这一共享工具将有助于提高我们招聘和留住优秀教师和研究生(包括少数族裔和女性)的能力，并将增加来自政府机构和私营部门的研究资金。申请的仪器还将用于现有的和新的课程以及当前的推广计划，为本科生和研究生、高中教师和学生提供使用最先进的3-D微型制造仪器的机会。

0923173NohThe goal of this project is to improve the quality and expand the scope of bioengineering research and training at Drexel University by providing shared 3-D micromanufacturing instrumentation. This proposal seeks the acquisition of two complementary 3-D micromanufacturing instruments: a micro stereolithography system and an excimer laser ablation system. Micro stereolithography is an additive 3-D printing technique that can build complex microstructures via a layer-by-layer curing process while excimer laser ablation is a subtractive laser machining technique that can be used for non-planar structures made of various materials such as plastics, glass, metals, ceramics, and semiconductors.Intellectual MeritsTissue engineering research necessitates the capability of building diverse scaffolds with complex 3-D geometries. Biosensors and lab-on-a-chip systems require multi-layer 3-D architecture to effectively integrate and package multiple components. Neuroscience and surgical engineering are in need of multi-functional neural probes and tools that utilize precisely defined 3-D micro-structures. The conventional microfabrication techniques such as photolithography and soft lithography are useful but they are limited to 2-D fabrication and cannot produce complex 3-D structures that are often necessary in bioengineering research activities. The lack of versatile 3-D micromanufacturing tools has hampered many bioengineering research projects at Drexel University. The requested 3-D micromanufacturing instruments will address this need and greatly improve the quality and expand the scope of bioengineering research and training activities, particularly in the areas of bioreactors, in vitro tissue modeling, tissue engineering, biosensors, microfluidics, lab-on-a-chip, biomechanics, biophysics,neuroscience, and surgical engineering.Broader ImpactsCombined with the existing 2-D microfabrication facility, the requested 3-D micromanufacturing instrumentation will provide a powerful and unique microscale manufacturing infrastructure for numerous research activities at Drexel University and in the Greater Philadelphia area. It is anticipated that at least 10 faculty members and 20 graduate students and post-doctoral researchers from 5 departments will become active users of the requested instruments. This shared instrumentation will contribute to improving our ability to recruit and retain outstanding faculty and graduate students (including minority and women) and will increase research funding from both government agencies and the private sector. The requested instruments will also be used in existing and new courses and current outreach programs, providing undergraduate and graduate students, high school teachers and students opportunities to work with state-of-the-art 3-D micromanufacturing instruments.