Figure 1
Robotic manipulation principles from macro- to nanoscale. (a) Macroscopic 6-axis robot in ‘classic’ design. (b) Gripper attachment for the macroscopic robot and (c) suction cap, respectively. (d) An analogous robotic platform for micromanipulation (here, in combination with a scanning electron microscope, SEM). (e) Gripper for the aforementioned micromanipulation platform, which allows for the handling of colloidal particles. (f) An equivalent of a suction cup that can be combined with an atomic force microscope (AFM). The inset shows a microfluidic hollow AFM cantilever with an aperture of 2 μm in diameter that can be directly connected to a nanofluidic controller. (g) The tip of an AFM-cantilever in comparison to the eye of a fly in SEM. (h) Example of nanomanipulation by applying shear forces by AFM to move particles to defined places on the sample. (i) Single manipulation steps for ‘pick’, ‘place’, and ‘release’, respectively, are illustrated by a human hand on the macroscopic scale. (j) Extending the ‘pick’ and ‘place’ concept to the colloidal domain and beyond: rather than applying mechanical pressure the interaction forces are tuned externally. Green indicates attractive interactions (i.e., equivalent to ‘grip’), and red indicates repulsive interactions (i.e., equivalent to ‘release’).
