Biodegradable micromechanical sensors

The development of biopolymers for food packaging, medical engineering or drug delivery is a growing field of research [1]. At the same time, the interest in methods for detailed analysis of biopolymers is increasing. Micromechanical sensors are versatile tools for the characterization of mechanical and thermal properties of polymers. For example, measurements of the resonance frequency of cantilevers were used to characterize thin polymer coatings in various environmental conditions [2]. Also, the influence of humidity on the Young’s modulus of SU-8 was evaluated [3]. However, introduction of biopolymers to microfabrication is challenging, as these polymers are affected by common processes such as photolithography or wet etching. Here, we present two methods for fabrication of biodegradable micromechanical sensors. First, we fabricated bulk biopolymer microcantilevers using nanoimprint lithography (NIL). Second, we used spray-coating to deposit thin biodegradable films on microcantilevers. Both approaches allowed the determination of the Young’s modulus of the biopolymer. Furthermore, biodegradation by enzymes was investigated.