Fully three-dimensional microfabrication with a grayscale polymeric self-sacrificial structure

Abstract

We present in this paper a novel method to fabricate fully three-dimensional (3D) microstructures and moving parts using a partially crosslinked polymer as sacrificial supports. This is realized on a projection microstereolithography (PµSL) which produces both the microstructure and the sacrificial part simultaneously using digital grayscale images. To establish the selectivity of the etchant to the partially crosslinked sacrificial parts, we measured the etching rate as a function of photo-crosslinking light intensity and the light exposure time. This technology may enable more complex scaffolds in tissue engineering and smart hydrogel devices.