Microcontact Printing of Macromolecules with Submicrometer Resolution by Means of Polyolefin Stamps

Abstract

Microcontact printing (µCP) is a simple and cost-effective method to create micrometer-scale chemical patterns on surfaces. By careful modification of the conventionally used stamping material (poly-(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS)) and the stamping technique (e.g., "thin stamp µCP"), one can create surface chemical structures down to the submicrometer size range. In the present paper we report on the application of a new class of materialsspolyolefin plastomers (POPs) for µCP applications. We show that the POP stamps are well suited to print proteins or block copolymers. Comparative studies on reproducibility, homogeneity, and quality of printing between POP and conventional PDMS stamps were also performed. The results show a superior performance of the POP stamps in the nanometer range and an identical performance in the micrometer range compared to PDMS. Further advantages of the POP-based µCP are faster stamp production, the lack of monomeric contamination (typical for PDMS stamps), and the possibility of recycling the POP stamps. We believe that POPs offer a useful alternative to PDMS for µCP and open new possibilities in submicrometer-range printing.

Sub-Micrometer Patterning Using Soft Lithography

“…For example, block co-polymers (e.g., polystyrene in conjunction with butadiene or ethylene/butylene) seem promising to this end as they can fulfill many of the requirements for high-resolution soft lithography [36,37]. A number of co-polymer formulations are superior to Sylgard 184 in terms of elastic modulus, which makes resultant replicas less susceptible to deformation and distortion.…”

Extremely Wetting Pattern by Photocatalytic Lithography and Its Application

“…The great difference in contact angle of the two extreme cases provides a potentially powerful and economical platform to directly and precisely construct patterned nanostructures in aqueous solution. In general, wetting micropatterns with low contact angle contrast (≤120 o ) on smooth substrates can be formed by photolithography (Falconnet et al, 2004;Kobayashi et al, 2011), microcontact lithography (Csucs et al, 2003;Kumar et al, 1992), colloidal patterning (Michel et al, 2002;Bhawalkar et al, 2010), electron beam lithography (Wang & Lieberman, 2003;, nanoimprint lithography (Jiao et al, 2005;Zhang et al, 2006), dip-pen nanolithography (Huang et al, 2010a;Lee et al, 2006;Xu & Liu, 1997), and so on. Among these methods, photocatalytic lithography employing semiconductors to photocatalytic decompose of organic monolayer is one of the most practical techniques because it able to accurately transfer an entire photomask pattern to a target substrate at a single exposure time under environmental condition (Bearinger et al, 2009;Lee & Sung, 2004;Nakata et al, 2010;Tatsuma et al, 2002;Wang et al, 2011).…”

Scanning probe-enabled nanocombinatorics define the relationship between fibronectin feature size and stem cell fate

“…Microcontact printing stamps and polymer pen arrays, both primarily composed of elastomers [e.g., polydimethylsiloxane, (PDMS)], themselves are inexpensive and cost less per printed pattern with repeated usage. Every time a pattern parameter (e.g., design, feature size, feature spacing) is altered, however, new masks (>$500 for a 4′′ wafer having simple features tens of microns in dimensions, and much more for submicron features) are needed for microcontact printing; moreover, some pattern designs require mechanical support for submicron features (10) or large feature spacings. PPL, on the other hand, takes advantage of high-precision piezoelectric x − y − z positional control offered by scanning probe instruments and the versatility of the elastomeric pen arrays to easily produce a diverse array of pattern designs, feature dimensions, and feature spacings without the need for new masks.…”