A support structure for biomimetic applications

Abstract

Water filtration on the basis of aquaporin molecules incorporated in an artificial lipid bilayer requires a microporous support membrane. We describe a new microfabrication method based on CO2-laser ablation to generate support membranes with homogeneous apertures ranging from 300 µm down to 84 µm in diameter. They are arranged in arrays with the densest packaging having a perforation level of up to 60%. The apertures are surrounded by a smooth bulge that is formed by melted material ejected from the aperture during laser ablation. Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) replicas were used to visualize and analyse these bulges. The overall area covered so far has been 4 cm2 but upscaling to larger footprints, e.g. square metres, is currently being investigated.