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Precise and Parallel Fabrication of Microactuator Arrays via Interfacial Supramolecular Adhesion
Siyuan Liu1, Bingkun Zhao1, Kuai Yu2
1State Key Laboratory of Chemical Resource Engineering & Beijing Laboratory of Biomedical Materials & Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Soft Matter Science and Engineering, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing 100029, China.
ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces
|March 20, 2026
Summary
We developed a scalable method for manufacturing fast-responding microactuators using macroscopic supramolecular assembly (MSA). This technique enables rapid, precise fabrication of soft robotic components for micromanipulation and collective intelligence applications.
Area of Science:
- Soft robotics
- Materials science
- Microfabrication
Background:
- Scalable manufacturing of microactuators using heterogeneous materials is challenging for soft robotics.
- Current methods like 3D printing limit scalability and device performance.
Purpose of the Study:
- To present a scalable, parallel strategy for fabricating microactuators with rapid response.
- To utilize supramolecular chemistry for precise microactuator assembly.
Main Methods:
- Macroscopic supramolecular assembly (MSA) using poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM)-β-cyclodextrin (CD) and polyacrylamide (PAAm)-adamantane (Ad) systems.
- Precise picking and placing of microhydrogel arrays using a mask aligner.
- In-situ interfacial force measurements and dynamic binding/debonding modeling.
Main Results:
- Achieved large-scale production of PNIPAM/PAAm microactuators with ultrafast response times (0.25 s actuation, 1.17 s deformation).
- Demonstrated enhanced mass and heat transfer at the microscale leading to rapid actuation.
- Confirmed MSA kinetics favor adhesion control and revealed the interfacial interactive mechanism.
Conclusions:
- MSA offers a scalable route for parallel fabrication of miniaturized devices.
- The developed microactuators exhibit rapid, reliable actuation suitable for soft robotics.
- This approach overcomes limitations of traditional microactuator manufacturing techniques.
