The M3dRES project aims at establishing a unique infrastructure devoted to 3d-printing for medical research in a strongly interdisciplinary environment.

M3dRES provides essential tools for personalized patient treatment, for the enhancement of medical imaging, for the acceleration of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine, and for the modernization of current medical education.

The consortium is formed by nine project partners, with the Center for Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, at the Medical University of Vienna as the coordinator.  An overview of the equipment available at M3dRES project can be found here:  https://www.m3dres.org/equipment/

 

Within the project, the Roll to Plate Tool (R2P) available at Profactor GmbH (established together with Stensborg A/S, Roskilde, Denmark) will extend the capabilities from conventional nanoimprint lithography (NIL) allowing large area replication of multi-layered complex structure with high precision. Modifications on the tool will be made in order to be able to register two or more layers to each other by including microscopes and adjustment capabilities for the substrate with reduced backlash.

One of the possible applications for the upgraded R2P is the fabrication of large area nanostructured surfaces with antibacterial properties.

Role-To-Plate-processes require large multi-structure templates. Therefore, one critical part of the project is the fabrication of large area printing plates using the Multitool system developed at Profactor.

The Multitool is a step&repeat tool, designed for replicating small structure fields to create large multi structure templates. Each imprint is produced separately by dispensing resist, imprinting the nano- or microstructured stamp into the resist, curing and separating. This process is repeated automatically on programmed positions.

Some highlights of the system:

  • 4-Axis system: XYZ to position the resist, A to position the stamp
  • repeat accuracy 10µm, backlash ±15µm
  • dispensing unit: heatable, broad range of viscosity and dispensing quantity
  • stamp holding unit: tiltable, rotatable
  • substrate table: heatable, alignable
  • microscope camera for controlling the process of contact, structure filling and separation
  • UV-curing unit, dimmable, λ 385nm, I (max) 800mW/cm²

Project Name:    
Additive Manufacturing for Medical Research (https://www.m3dres.org/)

 

Funding:    
FFG

Duration:    
01.05.2017 – 30.04.2021