TY - JOUR
T1 - Evolution of the Microrobots
T2 - Stimuli-Responsive Materials and Additive Manufacturing Technologies Turn Small Structures into Microscale Robots
AU - den Hoed, Frank Marco
AU - Carlotti, Marco
AU - Palagi, Stefano
AU - Raffa, Patrizio
AU - Mattoli, Virgilio
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 by the authors.
PY - 2024/2
Y1 - 2024/2
N2 - The development of functional microsystems and microrobots that have characterized the last decade is the result of a synergistic and effective interaction between the progress of fabrication techniques and the increased availability of smart and responsive materials to be employed in the latter. Functional structures on the microscale have been relevant for a vast plethora of technologies that find application in different sectors including automotive, sensing devices, and consumer electronics, but are now also entering medical clinics. Working on or inside the human body requires increasing complexity and functionality on an ever-smaller scale, which is becoming possible as a result of emerging technology and smart materials over the past decades. In recent years, additive manufacturing has risen to the forefront of this evolution as the most prominent method to fabricate complex 3D structures. In this review, we discuss the rapid 3D manufacturing techniques that have emerged and how they have enabled a great leap in microrobotic applications. The arrival of smart materials with inherent functionalities has propelled microrobots to great complexity and complex applications. We focus on which materials are important for actuation and what the possibilities are for supplying the required energy. Furthermore, we provide an updated view of a new generation of microrobots in terms of both materials and fabrication technology. While two-photon lithography may be the state-of-the-art technology at the moment, in terms of resolution and design freedom, new methods such as two-step are on the horizon. In the more distant future, innovations like molecular motors could make microscale robots redundant and bring about nanofabrication.
AB - The development of functional microsystems and microrobots that have characterized the last decade is the result of a synergistic and effective interaction between the progress of fabrication techniques and the increased availability of smart and responsive materials to be employed in the latter. Functional structures on the microscale have been relevant for a vast plethora of technologies that find application in different sectors including automotive, sensing devices, and consumer electronics, but are now also entering medical clinics. Working on or inside the human body requires increasing complexity and functionality on an ever-smaller scale, which is becoming possible as a result of emerging technology and smart materials over the past decades. In recent years, additive manufacturing has risen to the forefront of this evolution as the most prominent method to fabricate complex 3D structures. In this review, we discuss the rapid 3D manufacturing techniques that have emerged and how they have enabled a great leap in microrobotic applications. The arrival of smart materials with inherent functionalities has propelled microrobots to great complexity and complex applications. We focus on which materials are important for actuation and what the possibilities are for supplying the required energy. Furthermore, we provide an updated view of a new generation of microrobots in terms of both materials and fabrication technology. While two-photon lithography may be the state-of-the-art technology at the moment, in terms of resolution and design freedom, new methods such as two-step are on the horizon. In the more distant future, innovations like molecular motors could make microscale robots redundant and bring about nanofabrication.
KW - direct laser writing
KW - functional materials
KW - microactuators
KW - microdevice integration
KW - microfabrication
KW - microrobotics
KW - nanorobots
KW - untethered microdevices
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85185884541&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3390/mi15020275
DO - 10.3390/mi15020275
M3 - Review article
AN - SCOPUS:85185884541
SN - 2072-666X
VL - 15
JO - Micromachines
JF - Micromachines
IS - 2
M1 - 275
ER -