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Updated: Feb 21, 2026

In Vivo Wireless Optogenetic Control of Skilled Motor Behavior

In Vivo Wireless Optogenetic Control of Skilled Motor Behavior

Published on: November 22, 2021

Photonic Microhand with Autonomous Action.

Daniele Martella¹, Sara Nocentini¹, Dmitry Nuzhdin¹

¹European Laboratory for Non Linear Spectroscopy (LENS), University of Florence, Via Nello Carrara 1, 50019, Sesto Fiorentino, Italy.

Advanced Materials (Deerfield Beach, Fla.)

|October 5, 2017

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Scientists engineered a light-sensitive microhand inspired by human hands. This microrobot can autonomously grasp microparticles based on color and optical properties, paving the way for self-organized microscopic automation.

Keywords:

autonomous operations direct laser writing liquid-crystalline networks microhands self-activated microrobots

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Area of Science:

Robotics
Materials Science
Microtechnology

Background:

Microscale manipulation is challenging, even for biological organisms.
Existing micro-robotic grippers often require complex power sources or tethers.

Purpose of the Study:

To engineer a microhand capable of grasping microscale objects.
To develop a light-sensitive and autonomously operating micro-robotic hand.

Main Methods:

Fabrication of a microhand using a custom liquid-crystal network.
Patterning via photolithography to create elastic, light-responsive 'fingers'.
Utilizing optical illumination for remote control or autonomous particle capture.

Main Results:

The microhand successfully demonstrated grasping of microelements.
The device operates using light as its sole energy source, enabling miniaturization.
The microhand can distinguish particles by color and gray level, enabling selective capture.

Conclusions:

The engineered microhand represents a significant advancement in micro-robotic manipulation.
This technology facilitates the development of autonomous microscopic systems.
Potential applications include self-organized automation at the micrometer scale.