Fabrication of Bacteria Cell Arrays with Optical Vortex Laser-Induced Forward Transfer.

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Engineering
• Optics and Photonics
• Microfabrication

Background:

• Conventional laser-induced forward transfer (LIFT) has limitations in precision and cell viability.
• Precise patterning of biological materials is crucial for advanced microdevices.
• Optical vortex beams offer unique properties for controlled laser manipulation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate the direct printing of 2D cyanobacteria cell arrays using the OV-LIFT technique.
• To investigate the control over printed dot size and cell density.
• To compare the cell viability of OV-LIFT with conventional LIFT.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the optical vortex laser-induced forward transfer (OV-LIFT) technique.
• Printed 2-dimensional arrays of cyanobacteria cells.
• Adjusted donor film thickness and numerical aperture (NA) of focusing optics to control dot parameters.
• Assessed cell viability post-printing.

Main Results:

• Successfully demonstrated direct printing of well-aligned 2D cyanobacteria cell dots with high spatial resolution.
• Controlled dot size and cell number by adjusting donor film thickness and NA.
• Achieved significantly higher cyanobacteria cell viability (∼90%) with OV-LIFT compared to conventional LIFT (>63%).

Conclusions:

• OV-LIFT is a viable technique for high-precision, high-viability printing of biomaterial microarrays.
• The method allows for controlled fabrication of 2D and potentially 3D microstructures.
• Demonstrated potential for creating biomaterial-based microchannels for applications like light-harvesting devices.