A microfabricated piezoelectric transducer platform for mechanical characterization of cellular events
Journal
Smart Materials and Structures
Journal Volume
18
Journal Issue
9
Date Issued
2009
Author(s)
Abstract
During the last decade, it was discovered that the mechanical properties and interactions of cells and their surrounding extra-cellular matrix play important roles in cellular activities. Substantial efforts have been made to develop various methodologies and tools to study cell mechanics. In this paper, we report an ongoing study on integrating the concept of a smart structure with a microfabricated thin film piezoelectric transducer for characterizing the various changes in mechanical properties associated with cellular events. A microbridge sensor integrated with a thin film piezoelectric transducer was created from silicon dioxide and zinc oxide sandwiched between two gold electrodes. The cells to be tested were cultured on the microbridge surface. The surface tractions exerted by the cells on the microbridge directly modulated the selected resonant behaviors, which were detected with the custom designed effective surface electrode. Our theory and simulation results showed, for the first time, that the application and changes in these surface tractions resulted in resonant and anti-resonant frequency shifts in the impedance response of the piezoelectric transducer. Both spatial and temporal information of dynamic cellular activities could be inferred from the changes in the impedance spectra. The design, theory, finite-element simulation, microfabrication techniques, and preliminary test results are discussed. © 2009 IOP Publishing Ltd.
Type
journal article