ABSTRACT Photonics is a field that straddles both the macro and micro worlds. It largely deals with macro-scale devices, but many of these require sub-micron-scale precision in assembly. This makes it a very interesting application domain. We describe a microgripper for microassembly of photonic devices and micro-exploration of the properties of sub-micron attachment means (such as solder and U...

The past 10 years has witnessed a renewed interest in cellulose research and application, sparked mostly by technological interests in renewable raw materials and more environmentally friendly and sustainable resources. In this paper, we further expand the current knowledge in cellulose applications and technologies by reporting our discovery of cellulose as a smart material that can be used fo...

*Correspondence: Heung Soo Kim, Department of Mechanical, Robotics and Energy Engineering, Dongguk University, 30 Pil-Dong 1-ga, Jung-Gu, Seoul 100-715, South Korea e-mail: [email protected] Cellulose electro-active paper (EAPap) is an attractive material of electro-active polymers family due to its smart characteristics. EAPap is thin cellulose film coated with metal electrodes on both sides. I...

Micromanipulation is a hot topic due to its enabling role in various research fields. In order to perform a high precision operation at a small scale, compliant mechanisms have been proposed and applied for decades. In microscale manipulation, micro-/nano-positioning is the most fundamental operation because a precision positioning is the premise of subsequent operations. This paper is concentr...

A novel, integrated micromechanical actuator based on the principle of undulatory fish locomotion and intended for efficient on-chip cooling or venting applications is conceived and designed for an aluminum nitride-based thin-film technology applying coupled piezoelectric, mechanical, and fluidic analyses. The results of the investigations prove that an undulatory motion of the fin-like micro-f...