ABSTRACT

Due to the limitations of polysilicon, in particular, its lack of flexibility in biomedical applications and its expensive processing cost, numerous studies have been undertaken to investigate alternate materials for microelectromechanical processing and applications. Therefore, polymeric materials like polymethylsiloxane (PDMS) and hydrogel have been used to fabricate micromechanical components such as microfluidic valves and micropump diaphragms. These materials do offer more economical fabrication and elasticity than polysilicon does; however, their mechanical strength is not high enough for many biomedical applications.1