Silicon Nanotweezers With Subnanometer Resolution for the Micromanipulation of Biomolecules

Yamahata, Christophe; Collard, Dominique; Legrand, Bernard; Takekawa, T.; Kumemura, Momoko; Hashiguchi, Gen; Fujita, Hiroyuki

doi:10.1109/jmems.2008.922080

Cited by 89 publications

(68 citation statements)

References 35 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…This design is different from existing microgrippers that have either only one actively actuated gripping arm [7]- [9] or two interdependently active gripping arms [5]. Since to which gripping arm a microobject adheres is random, both gripping arms in our design have an independent actuator for positioning the adhered object to properly align to the plunger for release.…”

Section: Three-pronged Microgrippermentioning

confidence: 99%

Active Release of Microobjects Using a MEMS Microgripper to Overcome Adhesion Forces

Chen¹,

Zhang²,

Sun

2009

J. Microelectromech. Syst.

112

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract-Due to force scaling laws, large adhesion forces at the microscale make rapid accurate release of microobjects a longstanding challenge in pick-place micromanipulation. This paper presents a new microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) microgripper integrated with a plunging mechanism to impact the microobject for it to gain sufficient momentum to overcome adhesion forces. The performance was experimentally quantified through the manipulation of 7.5-10.9-µm borosilicate glass spheres in an ambient environment under an optical microscope. Experimental results demonstrate that this microgripper, for the first time, achieves a 100% successful release rate (based on 200 trials) and a release accuracy of 0.70 ± 0.46 µm. Experiments with conductive and nonconductive substrates also confirmed that the release process is not substrate dependent. Theoretical analyses were conducted to understand the release principle. Based on this paper, further scaling down the end structure of this microgripper will possibly provide an effective solution to the manipulation of submicrometer-sized objects.[

show abstract

Section: Three-pronged Microgrippermentioning

confidence: 99%

Active Release of Microobjects Using a MEMS Microgripper to Overcome Adhesion Forces

Chen¹,

Zhang²,

Sun

2009

J. Microelectromech. Syst.

112

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…There are various reports on the immobilization, positioning, alignment, and assembly of DNA bundles [22][23][24], nanowires [25][26][27][28][29], nanorods [30,31], and carbon nanotubes [32,33], mainly for circuit and sensory functions. Among the few reports in recent years on DEP of colloidal particles, with all dimensions in the submicrometer range, are the DEP capture of virus particles using a probe array with nanoscale tips [34], the optically induced dielectrophoretic trapping and subsequent assembly into arrays of gold nanoparticles [35], the use of DEP in conjunction with hydrodynamic forces to enhance nanoparticle transfer for rapid biosensing [36], and DEP enhancement of protein detection in a silicon-nanowire biosensor [37].…”

Section: Dep Of Colloidal Particlesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Continuous separation of colloidal particles using dielectrophoresis

2013

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Continuous separation of colloidal particles using dielectrophoresisDielectrophoresis is the movement of particles in nonuniform electric fields and has been of interest for application to manipulation and separation at and below the microscale. This technique has the advantages of being noninvasive, nondestructive, and noncontact, with the movement of particle achieved by means of electric fields generated by miniaturized electrodes and microfluidic systems. Although the majority of applications have been above the microscale, there is increasing interest in application to colloidal particles around a micron and smaller. This paper begins with a review of colloidal and nanoscale dielectrophoresis with specific attention paid to separation applications. An innovative design of integrated microelectrode array and its application to flow-through, continuous separation of colloidal particles is then presented. The details of the angled chevron microelectrode array and the test microfluidic system are then discussed. The variation in device operation with applied signal voltage is presented and discussed in terms of separation efficiency, demonstrating 99.9% separation of a mixture of colloidal latex spheres. Keywords:Colloidal / Dielectrophoresis / Separation DOI 10.1002/elps.2012004661 Introduction GeneralDielectrophoresis (DEP) is the motion arising from the interaction of nonuniform electric fields and the induced electrical dipole in polarizable particles [1][2][3][4][5]. The standard electrical technique of electrophoretic separation works when suspended charged particles migrate under the influence of applied electric field. DEP has distinct advantages over this technique in that it can separate neutral particles as well, allowing the separation of particles without having to physiologically alter them; which gives minimum particle handling and no damage. DEP also typically uses microfabricated electrodes to generate highly nonuniform electric fields, which allows it to be performed locally, whereas electrophoretic separation is generally a long-range effect acting between two large external electrodes. Due to the requirements for microfabrication, the localized nature of DEP, and the rapid growth of microfluidic Labon-a-Chip systems or TAS in the past two decades in both research and commercial sectors [6][7][8], there has been a recent growth in the application of DEP to these areas. The first practical application of Lab-on-a-Chip was in fact on-chip CE [9] and with recent advances in the synthesis and the charCorrespondence: Dr. Nicolas Green, Nano Group, School of Electronics and Computer Science, University of Southampton, Highfield, Southampton, SO17 1BJ, UK E-mail: ng2@ecs.soton.ac.uk Fax: +44-2380593029 acterization of size-selected particles in the submicron and nanometer (colloidal) range, an investigation of their physical and chemical properties is now possible [10]. The capability to produce small scale devices allows the development of entirely novel experiments and chip-based analytical system...

show abstract

“…Silicon nanotweezers with an initial tip gap of 20 μm were used to perform static and dynamic mechanical manipulations on DNA molecules. The technique was used to study the viscoelastic behaviour of DNA bundles and obtained a resolution better than 0.2 nm in static mode [18].…”

Section: Optical Tweezers [16]mentioning

confidence: 99%

Nanotechnology for Surgeons

Mali¹

2012

Indian J Surg

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Surgeons are constantly looking for minimally invasive ways to treat their patients, as recovery is faster when a lesser trauma is inflicted upon a patient, scarring is lessened and there are usually fewer complications in the aftermath of the operation. Through nanotechnology, tiny biosensors could be constructed which could take these factors into account, thus shortening a patients recovery period and saving hospitals money, reducing infection rates within the hospital, reducing the waiting lists for operation and allowing doctors to treat more patients in the same period of time. One of the greatest achievements of nanotechnology in surgery will be what we call the "ideal graft"; that is, biocompatible and durable "repairs" of parts of the body like arteries, joints or even organs. At first, these repairs will be used for healing, but soon afterwards, they will be used for transcendence: to enhance current human abilities.

show abstract

Silicon Nanotweezers With Subnanometer Resolution for the Micromanipulation of Biomolecules

Cited by 89 publications

References 35 publications

Active Release of Microobjects Using a MEMS Microgripper to Overcome Adhesion Forces

Active Release of Microobjects Using a MEMS Microgripper to Overcome Adhesion Forces

Continuous separation of colloidal particles using dielectrophoresis

Nanotechnology for Surgeons

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About