Replication of microneedle arrays using vacuum casting and hot embossing

Author

Trautmann, A. ; Heuck, F. ; Muelle, C. ; Ruther, P. ; Paul, O.

Author_Institution

IMTEK, Freiburg Univ., Germany

Volume

2

fYear

2005

Firstpage

1420

Abstract

The replication of silicon (Si) microneedle arrays via a soft silicone rubber mold into various polymers, namely SU-8, epoxy, cycloolefine copolymer (COC), and polycarbonate (PC) is reported. Vacuum casting and hot embossing are used to fabricate polymer wafers with 98 microneedle array dies with an individual size of 6×6 mm² each containing 841 microneedles. The same soft rubber mold can be used for both replication methods. Needles with heights of 75 μm and 150 μm, tip radii and edge radii below 2 μm and 1 μm, respectively, are excellently reproduced. The application of the needles in allergy testing is demonstrated.

Keywords

drug delivery systems; embossing; micromechanical devices; needles; polymers; replica techniques; silicon; silicone rubber; vacuum casting; 6 mm; 75 micron; SU-8; Si; allergy testing; cycloolefine copolymer; epoxy; hot embossing; microneedle array replication; microneedle die; polycarbonate; polymer wafer fabrication; silicon microneedle; silicone rubber mold; vacuum casting; Casting; Embossing; Fabrication; Medical services; Needles; Polymers; Rubber; Silicon; Skin; Testing;

fLanguage

English

Publisher

ieee

Conference_Titel

Solid-State Sensors, Actuators and Microsystems, 2005. Digest of Technical Papers. TRANSDUCERS '05. The 13th International Conference on

Print_ISBN

0-7803-8994-8

Type

conf

DOI

10.1109/SENSOR.2005.1497348

Filename

1497348