Micro-/Nanorobots Propelled by Oscillating Magnetic Fields

Abstract

Recent strides in micro- and nanomanufacturing technologies have sparked the development of micro-/nanorobots with enhanced power and functionality. Due to the advantages of on-demand motion control, long lifetime, and great biocompatibility, magnetic propelled micro-/nanorobots have exhibited considerable promise in the fields of drug delivery, biosensing, bioimaging, and environmental remediation. The magnetic fields which provide energy for propulsion can be categorized into rotating and oscillating magnetic fields. In this review, recent developments in oscillating magnetic propelled micro-/nanorobot fabrication techniques (such as electrodeposition, self-assembly, electron beam evaporation, and three-dimensional (3D) direct laser writing) are summarized. The motion mechanism of oscillating magnetic propelled micro-/nanorobots are also discussed, including wagging propulsion, surface walker propulsion, and scallop propulsion. With continuous innovation, micro-/nanorobots can become a promising candidate for future applications in the biomedical field. As a step toward designing and building such micro-/nanorobots, several types of common fabrication techniques are briefly introduced. Then, we focus on three propulsion mechanisms of micro-/nanorobots in oscillation magnetic fields: (1) wagging propulsion; (2) surface walker; and (3) scallop propulsion. Finally, a summary table is provided to compare the abilities of different micro-/nanorobots driven by oscillating magnetic fields.

Microbe‐Mediated Extracellular and Intracellular Mineralization: Environmental, Industrial, and Biotechnological Applications

“…[ 363 ] Hence, propelling micro/nanorobots driven by external power sources such as sound, light, magnet, enzymes, photocatalysts, electricity, or temperature have been an intensively studied topic of late in the arena of cancer therapeutics. [ 364–366 ] For magnetically driven micro/nanorobots, [ 367 ] those constructed with MTB and magnetosomes have found novel uses as self‐propelling, magnetically driven, controlled drug delivery systems in cancer therapeutics. [ 368,369 ] Nanoliposomes (≈70 nm diameter) have been covalently attached to the surface of the live, autopropelling MTB Magnetococcus marinus MC‐1 for the synthesis of self‐propelled carriers of therapeutic agents (Figure 17C).…”

Engineering microrobots for targeted cancer therapies from a medical perspective

“…Propulsion of synthetic microrobots can be achieved through physical or chemical means. Physical actuation can be mediated by varying external physical fields, for example, using magnetic fields 48 – 50 , ultrasound 51 – 53 or light 54 , as well as light-induced thermogradients 27 . Varying physical fields can be used for microrobot propulsion or guidance.…”

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“…By multiplying both sides of Eq. (14) with e 2Kt with further integration over [0,t], Eq. (14) becomes…”

“…Manipulating microparticles to reach desired positions is the key to the success of this procedure. Various microparticle manipulation approaches have been developed; these approaches utilize different techniques, including dielectrophoresis [3]- [6], optical tweezers [7]- [10], and magnetic tweezers [11]- [14]. Among these techniques, magnetic tweezers offer the unique The associate editor coordinating the review of this manuscript and approving it for publication was Nasim Ullah .…”