Pneumatically Driven Microcage for Microbe Manipulation in a Biological Liquid Environment

Author

Ok, Jerry ; Lu, Yen-Wen ; Kim, Chang-Jin C J

Author_Institution

Mech. & Aerosp. Eng. Dept., California Univ., Los Angeles, CA

Volume

15

Issue

6

fYear

2006

Firstpage

1499

Lastpage

1505

Abstract

This paper describes the design, fabrication, and force analysis of a pneumatically driven microcage. Pneumatic actuation, suitable to function in a wide range of environments, is especially useful for operation in a small liquid space. The capture of single motile microbes (Volvox and Stentor ~400 mum) in aqueous environments is demonstrated with the microcage. The setup for the capture experiment includes a visualization scheme, a robotic micropositioner, and an electropneumatic control system that facilitates the underwater tracking of the moving microbes and the operation of the microcage for subsequent capture

Keywords

cellular biophysics; micromanipulators; microorganisms; micropositioning; pneumatic actuators; 3D structure; MEMS; Volvox and Stentor; biological liquid environment; electropneumatic control system; force analysis; microbe manipulation; microelectromechanical systems; pneumatic actuation; pneumatically driven microcage; robotic micropositioner; single motile microbes; underwater tracking; Aerospace engineering; Gold; Grippers; Microelectromechanical systems; Micromechanical devices; Ocean temperature; Polymers; Sea surface; Silicon; Thermal expansion; Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS); pneumatic actuation; residual stress; three-dimensional (3-D) structure;

fLanguage

English

Journal_Title

Microelectromechanical Systems, Journal of

Publisher

ieee

ISSN

1057-7157

Type

jour

DOI

10.1109/JMEMS.2006.883887

Filename

4020283