Dry Etching Process on a Conducting Interpenetrating Polymer Network Actuator for a Flapping Fly Micro Robot

Abstract

In this paper we report on conducting polymer micro-actuators which have been fully patterned using photolithography and plasma dry etching processes. The interpenetrating polymer network (IPN) architecture used in this work resolves interface and adhesion problems which have been reported for traditional conducting polymer-based actuators. Actuator films 17 μm thick can be obtained and then patterned using microfabrication technologies. IPN-actuators were etched to obtain 2*5mm2 beams operating in air. These micro-sized actuators are potential candidates in numerous low frequency applications, including micro-valves, micro-optical instrumentation and micro-robotics. Moreover, due to the rapid response of our IPN architecture, this material has been considered as the main actuator for the flapping wings of an artificial insect.