Electromechanical Systems MEMS and other Microdevices

MICRO-ELECTROMECHANICAL SYSTEMS (MEMS) AND OTHER MICRODEVICES 

Perhaps the most spectacular CEP microdevice yet constructed is the microrobot arm produced by researchers at Linkoping University in Sweden.132 This microrobot consists of several CEP actuators that provide elbow-, wrist-, and finger-like movements. The robot has been demonstrated through a series of maneuvers where it first grasps, picks up, moves, and releases a glass sphere. 

The processability of certain CEPs has been utilized in the construction of microsystems, particularly miniature sensor systems. For example, simply dip-coating connecting platinum wires with a polyaniline formulation produces a useful humidity sensor.133 CEPs can also be screen-printed or ink-jet-printed to produce the complex shapes needed for various devices. Electrodeposition of CEPs is also a popular processing method, and this technique is compatible with conventional MEMS fabrication, where lithography and etching can be used to prepattern metal electrodes. Subsequent deposition of CEP by electrochemical polymerization produces the CEP microdevice.129 

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