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US 12,728,586 B2Granted
Methods and systems of obtaining patterned structures on surfaces
AssigneeGeorgia Tech Research Corporation
InventorsJason Hayes Nadler, Katherine E. Copenhaver
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Method for producing arrays of free standing, three dimensional structures on material surfaces by establishing contact with a template, moving the template and the surface in contact relative to one another, inducing an increase in viscosity such that the structures are self-supported, and removing the template, leaving a negative of the template geometry at the tip of the object.
Claims19
A method comprising:
- forming free-standing structures of a composition comprising:
- initiating physical contact between a template initially distanced from the composition in a viscous state with first flow characteristics by bringing together via movement discrete portions of the template and an upper surface of the composition in a viscous state until the discrete portions of the template are no longer distanced from the composition in a viscous state;
- drawing structures of the composition in a viscous state with the first flow characteristics, each structure drawn a structure height defined between:
- a structure base portion at which the physical contact is initiated between a respective discrete portion of the template and the upper surface of the composition in a viscous state;
- and
- a structure tip portion at a location of contact with the respective discrete portion of the template;
- and
- removing physical contact between the respective structure tip portion of each drawn structure of the composition with second flow characteristics from the respective discrete portion of the template;
- wherein:
- the second flow characteristics of the composition comprise rheological properties that are sufficient to retain the drawn structures as free-standing upon the step of removing physical contact;
- one of the first flow characteristics is a first viscosity of the composition in a viscous state, one of the second flow characteristics is a second viscosity of the composition in a viscous state, and the second viscosity is higher than the first viscosity;
- a degree of the physical contact between the template and the composition and a shape and/or size of each structure tip portion are each tunable by controlling a dip depth of the discrete portions of the template into the composition in a viscous state and controlling wetting between the discrete portions of the template and the composition in a viscous state;
- and
- the tip portions of at least a portion of the free-standing structures each have a shape based at least in part by a respective shape of the location of contact of the respective drawn structure of the composition in a viscous state in prior physical contact with the respective discrete portion of the template.
11 more elements
A method comprising:
- drawcasting template-shaped features onto structure tip portions of free-standing structures of a composition comprising:
- initiating physical contact between a template initially distanced from the composition in a viscous state with first flow characteristics by moving the template toward the composition in a viscous state until discrete portions of the template having template-shaped features physically contact an upper surface of the composition in a viscous state;
- drawing discrete structures of the composition in a viscous state with the first flow characteristics by moving the template away from the upper surface of the composition in a viscous state, each discrete structure drawn a structure height defined between:
- a structure base portion proximal to the upper surface of the composition in a viscous state;
- and
- a structure tip portion proximal to a respective discrete portion of the moving template and distal from the upper surface of the composition in a viscous state;
- and
- removing physical contact between the respective structure tip portion of the drawn structure of the composition with second flow characteristics from the respective discrete portion of the template;
- wherein:
- the second flow characteristics of the composition comprise rheological properties that are sufficient to retain the structures as free-standing upon the step of removing physical contact;
- one of the first flow characteristics is a first viscosity of the composition in a viscous state, one of the second flow characteristics is a second viscosity of the composition in a viscous state, and the second viscosity is higher than the first viscosity;
- a degree of the physical contact between the template and the composition and a shape and/or size of each structure tip portion are each tunable by controlling a dip depth of the discrete portions of the template into the composition in a viscous state and controlling wetting between the discrete portions of the template and the composition in a viscous state;
- and
- the structure tip portions of the free-standing structures are each drawncast with the template-shaped features of the respective discrete portion of the template.
11 more elements
A method comprising:
- imprinting template-shaped features onto structure tip portions of free-standing structures of a composition comprising:
- initiating physical contact between a template initially distanced from the composition in a viscous state with first flow characteristics by moving the template toward the composition in a viscous state until discrete portions of the template having template-shaped features physically contact an upper surface of the composition in a viscous state;
- drawing discrete structures of the composition in a viscous state with the first flow characteristics by moving the template away from the upper surface of the composition in a viscous state, each discrete structure drawn a structure height defined between:
- a structure base portion proximal to the upper surface of the composition in a viscous state;
- and
- a structure tip portion proximal to a respective discrete portion of the moving template and distal from the upper surface of the composition in a viscous state;
- and
- removing physical contact between the respective structure tip portion of the drawn structure of the composition with second flow characteristics from the respective discrete portion of the template;
- wherein:
- the second flow characteristics of the composition comprise rheological properties that are sufficient to retain the structures as free-standing upon the step of removing physical contact;
- one of the first flow characteristics is a first viscosity of the composition in a viscous state, one of the second flow characteristics is a second viscosity of the composition in a viscous state, and the second viscosity is higher than the first viscosity;
- a degree of the physical contact between the template and the composition and a shape and/or size of each structure tip portion are each tunable by controlling a dip depth of the discrete portions of the template into the composition in a viscous state and controlling wetting between the discrete portions of the template and the composition in a viscous state;
- and
- the structure tip portions of the free-standing structures are each imprinted with the template-shaped features of the respective discrete portion of the template.
11 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.