Sangwon Kim¹, Famin Qiu², Samhwan Kim³, Ali Ghanbari¹, Cheil Moon³, Li Zhang⁴, Bradley J. Nelson^1,2,*, Hongsoo Choi^1,*

¹ Robotics Engineering Department, Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST), 711-873, Daegu, South Korea
² Institute of Robotics and Intelligent Systems, ETH Zurich, Zurich, CH-8092, Switzerland
³ Brain Science Department, Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST), 711-873, Daegu, South Korea
⁴ Department of Mechanical and Automation Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China

^* Corresponding authors

Magnetically manipulated microrobots are demonstrated for targeted cell transportation. Full three-dimensional (3D) porous structures are fabricated with an SU-8 photoresist using a 3D laser lithography system. Nickel and titanium are deposited as a magnetic material and biocompatible material, respectively. The fabricated microrobots are controlled in the fluid by external magnetic fields. Human embryonic kidney 239 (HEK 239) cells are cultivated in the microrobot to show the possibility for targeted cell transportation.

Keywords: microrobots; magnetic manipulation; three-dimensional cell culture; targeted cell transportation