Figure 3
Fabrication of MEMS hair cell sensors.
(a) A flexible PDMS wafer with a number of PDMS pillar bundles. Insert shows the top view of the sensor through the hydrogel cupula. The tips of the pillars can be seen through the transparent hydrogel. (b) Microscopic side-view image of the sensor showing the hydrogel cupula and the PDMS pillars with height gradient. Note that the row of shortest pillars is closest to the viewer. (c) SEM image showing the tips of four pillars and the tip links connecting them. (d) Schematic and optical image of the MEMS device fabricated to determine the piezoelectric coefficient of a single nanofiber. The device consists of a single nanofiber suspended on a DRIE cavity in silicon and bridges two gold contact pads. (e) Nanomechanical electrical characterization of a single PVDF nanofiber to determine the piezoelectric coefficient of the fiber. Error bars are S.D.; n = 5.
