Molding of micropatterned biomimetic structures with PDMS

Şen E., Lapa H. E., Akyürekli S., Kaleli M.

TURKISH PHYSICAL SOCIETY 37TH INTERNATIONAL PHYSICS CONGRESS, Muğla, Türkiye, 1 - 05 Eylül 2021, ss.155, (Özet Bildiri)

  • Yayın Türü: Bildiri / Özet Bildiri
  • Basıldığı Şehir: Muğla
  • Basıldığı Ülke: Türkiye
  • Sayfa Sayıları: ss.155
  • Süleyman Demirel Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) is a very useful polymer material that is biocompatible, flexible, cost-effective, transparent, and has a glass transition temperature close to room temperature. In addition, this material, whose fluidity can be controlled by the amount of hardening agent (curing), can be applied easily and quickly in many mold processes. Doping and plasma treatment applied to the surface can change the hydrophobic property of PDMS. PDMS with these flexible features; is often preferred in solar cells, electrooptics, wearable electronics, and flexible pressure sensors. Pressure sensors must have both repeatable flexibility and controllable conductivity in order to sense external mechanical forces and generate compatible electrical signals. Transferring a conductive polymer onto a PDMS substrate to form conductive polymer/PDMS structures is a widely applied strategy to fabricate flexible pressure sensors. Many current studies are carried out on living structures (plant, insect, etc.), which have regular symmetry in nature, and their use in pressure sensors and wearable electronics by molding them with PDMS. In this study, each of the samples such as cactus, insects, fish scales, whose mirror symmetry patterns were taken with PDMS, have symmetrical patterned structures that have the potential to be used in different applications. The patterns of these samples and mirrorsymmetric PDMS molds were determined by SEM analysis (symmetric region area, repeatability, pattern depth, etc.). Piezoresistive sensor studies were carried out on the silver-coated PDMS pattern produced using a PDMS mold taken from carp scales (Cyprinus Carpio) and the resistance values were measured. The molding method used in this study, surface improvement studies, and optimization of pressure/resistance values will lead to the production of many biocompatible IoT sensors to be used in the future.