Various microstructures fabricated by a solvent-cast 3-D printing technique

Various microstructures including straight filaments, layer-by-layer scaffolds and freeform helical spirals are fabricated by a solvent-cast three-dimensional printing technique, as reported by Professor Therriault and his co-researchers on page 4118.

The fabrication capabilities of this powerful and flexible process are demonstrated by the printing of three microsystems featuring mechanical, microfluidic and electrical functionalities, such as a high-toughness microstructured fibre, a 3D microchannel and a Ka band antenna. These capabilities can be extended through the utilization of other thermoplastic-based inks and the printing of features at the submicrometer- and potentially nanoscale.

This is the first scientific publication by Shuang-Zhuang Guo, a doctoral student in mechanical engineering under the supervision of Professors Therriault of the Laboratory for Multiscale Mechanics (LM2) and Marie-Claude Heuzey of the Department of Chemical Engineering, both members of Polytechnique's Montréal's Centre for Applied Research on Polymers and Composites (CREPEC).

Provided by Polytechnique Montréal