3D lithography of polymers for micro-photonic applications

New techniques for manipulating surface wettability have been recently presented and a wide variety of techniques have been developed for fabricating 3D structures of interest in the optics, photonics and nanotechnology fields. The so called soft lithography is able to transfer microscale patterns to a substrate by using an elastomeric stamp or mold, typically made of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS). This technique allows one to develop biocompatible lab-on-chip devices for a wide variety of applications ranging from organic LED to cell and tissue engineering and biomolecular analysis.