Development of magnetic-field-driven artificial cilium array with magnetic orientation in each cilium

Abstract

Artificial cilia actuated by an applied magnetic field have been developed. In our previous report, we demonstrated actuated cilia of a few millimeters scale, which were fabricated by cutting a magnetic elastomer sheet. The fabricated artificial cilia worked similarly to natural cilia; however, they had a much larger structure than natural ones, and showed difficulty for use in pumping systems in micro-total analysis systems (µTAS) fields. Thus, our goal is further miniaturization. In this study, we introduce a new process of fabricating smaller pillar structures with a magnetic orientation in each pillar by ultraviolet (UV) laser machining. We also give different orientations to groups of pillars by the alternate laser machining of the mold and casting processes.