Stereolithography for Personalized Left Atrial Appendage Occluders.

Advancements in 3D additive manufacturing have spurred the development of effective patient-specific medical devices. Prior applications are limited to hard materials, however, with few implementations of soft devices that better match the properties of natural tissue. This paper introduces a rapid, low cost, and scalable process for fabricating soft, personalized medical implants via stereolithography of elastomeric polyurethane resin. The effectiveness of this approach is demonstrated by designing and manufacturing patient-specific endocardial implants. These devices occlude the left atrial appendage, a complex structure within the heart prone to blood clot formation in patients with atrial fibrillation. Existing occluders permit residual blood flow and can damage neighboring tissues. Here, the robust mechanical properties of the hollow, printed geometries are characterized and stable device anchoring through in vitro benchtop testing is confirmed. The soft, patient-specific devices outperform non-patient-specific devices in embolism and occlusion experiments, as well as in computational fluid dynamics simulations.

Patient-specific design of a soft occluder for the left atrial appendage.

3D printing has been used to create a wide variety of anatomical models and tools for procedural planning and training. Yet, the printing of permanent, soft endocardial implants remains challenging because of the need for haemocompatibility and durability of the printed materials. Here, we describe an approach for the rapid prototyping of patient-specific cardiovascular occluders via 3D printing and static moulding of inflatable silicone/polyurethane balloons derived from volume-rendered computed tomography scans. We demonstrate the use of the approach, which provides custom-made implants made of high-quality, durable and haemocompatible elastomeric materials, in the fabrication of devices for occlusion of the left atrial appendage-a structure known to be highly variable in geometry and the primary source of stroke for patients with atrial fibrillation. We describe the design workflow, fabrication and deployment of patient-specific left atrial appendage occluders and, as a proof-of-concept, show their efficacy using 3D-printed anatomical models, in vitro flow loops and an in vivo large animal model.

Laser-induced nanoscale thermocapillary flow for purification of aligned arrays of single-walled carbon nanotubes.

Although aligned arrays of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) have outstanding potential for use in broad classes of advanced semiconductor devices, the relatively large population of metallic SWNTs (m-SWNTs) that results from conventional growth techniques leads to significantly degraded performance. Recently reported methods based on thermocapillary effects that enable removal of m-SWNTs from such arrays offer exceptional levels of efficiency, but the procedures are cumbersome and require multiple processing steps. Here we present a simple, robust alternative that yields pristine arrays of purely semiconducting SWNTs (s-SWNTs) by use of irradiation with an infrared laser. Selective absorption by m-SWNTs coated with a thin organic film initiates nanoscale thermocapillary flows that lead to exposure only of the m-SWNTs. Reactive ion etching eliminates the m-SWNTs without damaging the s-SWNTs; removal of the film completes the purification. Systematic experimental studies and computational modeling of the thermal physics illuminates the essential aspects of this process. Demonstrations include use of arrays of s-SWNTs formed in this manner as semiconducting channel materials in statistically relevant numbers of transistors to achieve both high mobilities (>900 cm2 V(-1) s(-1)) and switching ratios (>10(4)). Statistical analysis indicates that the arrays contain at least 99.8% s-SWNTs and likely significantly higher.

Microwave purification of large-area horizontally aligned arrays of single-walled carbon nanotubes.

Recent progress in the field of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) significantly enhances the potential for practical use of this remarkable class of material in advanced electronic and sensor devices. One of the most daunting challenges is in creating large-area, perfectly aligned arrays of purely semiconducting SWNTs (s-SWNTs). Here we introduce a simple, scalable, large-area scheme that achieves this goal through microwave irradiation of aligned SWNTs grown on quartz substrates. Microstrip dipole antennas of low work-function metals concentrate the microwaves and selectively couple them into only the metallic SWNTs (m-SWNTs). The result allows for complete removal of all m-SWNTs, as revealed through systematic experimental and computational studies of the process. As one demonstration of the effectiveness, implementing this method on large arrays consisting of ~20,000 SWNTs completely removes all of the m-SWNTs (~7,000) to yield a purity of s-SWNTs that corresponds, quantitatively, to at least to 99.9925% and likely significantly higher.

Using nanoscale thermocapillary flows to create arrays of purely semiconducting single-walled carbon nanotubes.

Among the remarkable variety of semiconducting nanomaterials that have been discovered over the past two decades, single-walled carbon nanotubes remain uniquely well suited for applications in high-performance electronics, sensors and other technologies. The most advanced opportunities demand the ability to form perfectly aligned, horizontal arrays of purely semiconducting, chemically pristine carbon nanotubes. Here, we present strategies that offer this capability. Nanoscale thermocapillary flows in thin-film organic coatings followed by reactive ion etching serve as highly efficient means for selectively removing metallic carbon nanotubes from electronically heterogeneous aligned arrays grown on quartz substrates. The low temperatures and unusual physics associated with this process enable robust, scalable operation, with clear potential for practical use. We carry out detailed experimental and theoretical studies to reveal all of the essential attributes of the underlying thermophysical phenomena. We demonstrate use of the purified arrays in transistors that achieve mobilities exceeding 1,000 cm(2) V(-1) s(-1) and on/off switching ratios of ∼10,000 with current outputs in the milliamp range. Simple logic gates built using such devices represent the first steps toward integration into more complex circuits.

Epitaxial growth of three-dimensionally architectured optoelectronic devices.

Optoelectronic devices have long benefited from structuring in multiple dimensions on microscopic length scales. However, preserving crystal epitaxy, a general necessity for good optoelectronic properties, while imparting a complex three-dimensional structure remains a significant challenge. Three-dimensional (3D) photonic crystals are one class of materials where epitaxy of 3D structures would enable new functionalities. Many 3D photonic crystal devices have been proposed, including zero-threshold lasers, low-loss waveguides, high-efficiency light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and solar cells, but have generally not been realized because of material limitations. Exciting concepts in metamaterials, including negative refraction and cloaking, could be made practical using 3D structures that incorporate electrically pumped gain elements to balance the inherent optical loss of such devices. Here we demonstrate the 3D-template-directed epitaxy of group III-V materials, which enables formation of 3D structured optoelectronic devices. We illustrate the power of this technique by fabricating an electrically driven 3D photonic crystal LED.