Fabrication of a Soft Photothermal Microactuator Using Two-photon Polymerization and Vacuum Filling

A fabrication method of a soft photothermal microactuator using two-photon polymerization and vacuum filling is proposed. Proposed microactuator was fabricated through two processes: A two-photon polymerization (TPP) and a composite injection by a vacuum filling. First, a PDMS microcantilever with a microfluidic channel was printed by TPP. Second, a PDMS composite containing thermally expandable microspheres was filled in the microfluidic channel. To validate this method, a microactuator with dimensions of 1 mm × 130 µm × 100 µm was fabricated. We demonstrated the ability of the soft photothermal microactuator to produce displacement of approximately 50 µm by laser heating.