SelfSys: Fluidic-mediated self-assembly for hybrid functional micro/nanosystems
Project Leader: Jürgen Brugger of EPFL/STI/IMT/LMIS1 +41 21 693 6573
Helmut Knapp of CSEM, expert in Micro-/nano fluidics
Alcherio Martinoli of EPFL/ENAC/ISTE/DISAL, expert in Modeling-self-organized systems
Bradley Nelson of ETHZ/IRIS, expert in Micro-/Nano-robotics
Laurent Sciboz of Icare research institute, expert in RFID middleware for food and medical industries
Nicholas Spencer of ETHZ/D-MATL/Surface Science, expert in Surface chemistry. surface gradients
Packaging and assembly of micro/nanosystems (M/NEMS) is a key factor in their commercial success, but is often neglected in academic and pre-competitive industrial research and development. A lack of innovative solutions for the manufacturing of next-generation smart systems with hybrid, multi-functional devices would hamper the advances that are needed in health care, information technology and environmental engineering. For instance, a typical situation today is that the individual components of the hybrid system can be readily fabricated separately by well-known state-of-the-art methods, but they are either too small or too numerous to be assembled using conventional assembly techniques. The solution studied in this project is based on interaction forces in liquids and goes well beyond what is known today as fluidicself-assembly on surfaces using wetting properties to fine-position MEMS pats.
The ultimate goal is to self-assemble free-floating N/MEMS uilding blocks in a liquid, and then deploy the assembled parts onto surfaces, the environment or the human body, where they fulfill an application-specific functionali. This fluidic-based self-assemly forms the basis for future intelligent systems manufacturing beyond robotic assembly, flip-chi, etc. The expected outcomes are cost-efficient yet flexile and form an exemplary combination of high numbers (tera) of ultra-small components (nano/micro) to be assembled into complex systems.
The project involves an intimate interaction between advanced micro/nanoengineering, surface functionalization, microfluidics sensor/actuator and micro/nanorobotic concepts, as well as modeling and computer-aided design.The fist phase of the research focuses on the setting-up of the free-floating and guided fluidic assely technology. The work will then be devoted to the implementation of the enabling technology for two applications that have been identified one targeting the assembly of RFID micro-tags with other M/NEMS in a massive parallel way, the other aiming at the assembly of liquid-containing micro-capsules that can be triggered for liquid release. In general, such integrated systems can enable non-invasive smart drug delivery devices, self-assembling implants, surgical microrobots, smart clothing, ultra-small wireless sensor nodes for environmental monitoring and proactive maintenance of complex civil and mechanical structures.
Modeling self-assembly across scales: The unifying perspective of Smart Minimal Particles M. Mastrangeli, G. Mermoud, A. Martinoli, Micromachines 2 (2), (0, 2011)
Dielectrophoretic assembly of carbon nanotube-based NEMS devices using floating electrodes D. Xu, K. Shou, B. J. Nelson, Microelectron. Eng., (0, 2011)
A photopatternable superparamagnetic nanocomposite: Material characterization and fabrication of microstructures M. Sutera, O.Ergeneman, J.Zürcher, C.Moitzi, S.Pané, T.Rudin, S.E. Pratsinis , B.J.Nelson, C.Hierold, Sens. Actuators B: Chem., (0, 2011)
Self-Organized Robotic Systems: Large-Scale Experiments in Aggregation and Self-Assembly using Miniature Robots G. Mermoud, A. Prorok, L. Matthey-de-l'Endroit, C. Cianci, A. Martinoli, Handbook of Collective Robotics, (0, 2011)
Superparamagnetic photocurable nanocomposite for the fabrication of microcantilevers M. Suter, O. Ergeneman, J. Zürcher, S. Schmid, A. Camenzind, B. J. Nelson and C. Hierold, J. Micromech. Microeng. (0, 2011)
Packaging and assembly of micro/nanosystems (M/NEMS) is a key factor in their commercial success, but is often neglected in academic and pre-competitive industrial research and development. A lack of innovative solutions for the manufacturing of next-generation smart systems with hybrid, multi-functional devices would hamper the advances that are needed in health care, information technology and environmental engineering. For instance, a typical situation today is that the individual components of the hybrid system can be readily fabricated separately by well-known state-of-the-art methods, but they are either too small or too numerous to be assembled using conventional assembly techniques. The solution studied in this project is based on interaction forces in liquids and goes well beyond what is known today as fluidicself-assembly on surfaces using wetting properties to fine-position MEMS pats. 
