3D printing and bioprinting using multiphoton lithography

Abstract

3D printing based on multiphoton absorption is playing a growing role in biomedical engineering and regenerative medicine. Multiphoton lithography is a 3D printing approach that is based on the multiphoton absorption process. The review focuses on the use of multiphoton lithography to create microneedles, microfluidic devices, nanoprobes, filters, and tissue engineering scaffolds with sub-micrometer scale features. The fundamental requirements of the multiphoton absorption process are described. Efforts to increase the processing rate as well as understand the bioresorbability of multiphoton lithography-created structures are discussed. Improvements to the biocompatibility of the polymers and photoinitiators used in multiphoton lithography are considered. The multiphoton lithography process offers unique opportunities to process tissue engineering scaffolds with small-scale features.