Abstract
Most biological hairy adhesive systems involved in locomotion rely on spatula-shaped terminal elements, whose operation has been actively studied during the last decade. However, though functional principles underlying their amazing performance are now well understood, due to technical difficulties in manufacturing the complex structure of hierarchical spatulate systems, a biomimetic surface structure featuring true shear-induced dynamic attachment still remains elusive. To try bridging this gap, a novel method of manufacturing gecko-like attachment surfaces is devised based on a laser-micromachining technology. This method overcomes the inherent disadvantages of photolithography techniques and opens wide perspectives for future production of gecko-like attachment systems. Advanced smart-performance surfaces featuring thin-film-based hierarchical shear-activated elements are fabricated and found capable of generating friction force of several tens of times the contact load, which makes a significant step forward towards a true gecko-like adhesive.
Highlights
Hairy attachment systems of insects, arachnids and reptiles have been intensively studied during the last decade,[1] aiming to reveal and possibly utilize functional principles underlying their amazing dynamical adhesive performance
Though functional principles underlying their amazing performance are well understood, due to technical difficulties in manufacturing the complex structure of hierarchical spatulate systems, a biomimetic surface structure featuring true shear-induced dynamic attachment still remains elusive. To try bridging this gap, a novel method of manufacturing gecko-like attachment surfaces is devised based on a laser-micromachining technology. This method overcomes the inherent disadvantages of photolithography techniques and opens wide perspectives for future production of gecko-like attachment systems
We have devised a novel method of manufacturing gecko-like hierarchical shear-activated attachment surfaces based on laser micromachining
Summary
Hairy ( brillar) attachment systems of insects, arachnids and reptiles have been intensively studied during the last decade,[1] aiming to reveal and possibly utilize functional principles underlying their amazing dynamical adhesive performance. These systems consist of arrays of hairs (setae) with two or more levels of hierarchy, which allow for a large contact area on almost any surface and feature high adhesion and friction derived from a combination of molecular interaction and capillary attractive forces.[2,3,4,5,6,7] The topmost hierarchical level of seta is responsible for the formation of intimate contact with the substrate and shows up as one or more terminal elements involving thin lms.[8,9,10,11,12] In general, thin- lm elements can be subdivided into two main groups characterized by different appearance and function. Mushroom-shaped structures were relatively easy to be fabricated due to their symmetry and thorough studies of their various properties and abilities have followed, performed rst experimentally[21,26,27,28,29,30,31,32,33,34,35,36,37,38,39,40,41] and theoretically.[42,43,44,45] though mushroom-shaped microstructure is well adapted for static passive applications such as glass safety coverings[46] or medical patches,[47] it is not able to withstand shear load, detach with zero load and respond directionally, which makes it not suitable for active dynamic short-term attachment required in many cases
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
