Engineering of Materials through Light-Induced C,H-Insertion Crosslinking with Maskless Photolithography and Direct Laser Writing

Material systems based on C, H-insertion crosslinking (CHic) can be tailored by copolymerizing a wide variety of components. This capability not only broadens the spectrum of materials available for utilization but also offers the possibility of producing functional patterns and microstructures.
To generate customized surface patterns, a maskless photolithography technique based on digital micromirror devices (DMDs) was utilized for CHic-able materials in this work. Rapid, flexible, and cost-effective fabrication of surface patterns with a broad spectrum of geometries has been achieved. The surface functionalization patterns were pre-programmed and generated with a high degree of spatial control. In addition, the widely applicable CHic reaction enables pattern generation on various materials, irrespective of the nature of the chosen substrates.
Furthermore, direct laser writing (DLW) was utilized to produce high-precision 3D microstructures with complex geometries and customized properties using CHic-able materials. The generated microstructures were used as 3D cell culture platforms, exhibiting excellent biocompatibility and cellular adhesion. Impressively, the one-step fabrication of tailored multi-component scaffolds, with precisely defined geometries and integrated multiple properties, has been realized. The capability of such tailored scaffolds in manipulating individual cell adhesion and morphology has been demonstrated, indicating the great promise of this approach for advancements in biological research and medical applications.