Basic study of high DOF micromanipulation by surface tension using the multi-needle-type capillary

High DOF manipulation method is required under microenvironment. In the typical method of micromanipulation by surface tension, however, tilting or rotating of a target is difficult. The multi-needle-type capillary is proposed for high DOF micromanipulation by surface tension. The multi-needle-type capillary is composed of thin needles which are cylindrically arranged, linear-motion mechanisms of the needles and a liquid pump mechanism inside the needles. The needles can be regarded as a hypothetical capillary. In case the capillary is filled with a liquid, then, a droplet is formed on the capillary tip. Therefore, a target can be held with the capillary-tip droplet by surface tension. In addition, the capillary-tip surface and the capillary-tip droplet are transformed when each needle is moved up or down. Therefore, the target, which is held with the capillary-tip droplet, can be tilted and rotated. In this paper, design and fabrication of the multi-needle-type capillary is described. Displacement of linear-motion mechanisms and transformation of capillary tip are evaluated in the experiment. Then, manipulation of chip resistors using the multi-needle-type capillary is evaluated.