Laser beam transforms into 3D “painter”

There are many ways to create three dimensional objects on a micrometer scale. But how can the chemical properties of a material be tuned at micrometer  precision? Scientists at the Vienna University of Technology developed a method to attach molecules at exactly the right place. When biological tissue is grown, this method can allow the positioning of chemical signals, telling living cells where to attach. The new technique also holds promise for sensor technology: A tiny three dimensional “lab on a chip” could be created, in which accurately positioned molecules react with substances from the environment.

“3D-photografting” is the name of the new method. Two research teams from the Vienna University of Technology collaborated closely to develop it: Professor Jürgen Stampfl’s materials science team and Professor Robert Liska’s research group for macromolecular chemistry.