A hydrogel-based intravascular microgripper manipulated using magnetic fields

This study presents a magnetic hydrogel-based microgripper that can be wirelessly manipulated using magnetic fields. The proposed device can move freely in liquids when driven by direct current (dc) magnetic fields, and perform a gripping motion by using alternating current (ac) magnetic fields. The device is fabricated from a biocompatible hydrogel material that can be employed for intravascular applications. The actuation mechanism for gripping motions is realized by controlling the exposure dose on the hydrogel composite during the lithography process. The preliminary characterization of the device is also presented. The measurement results show that the gripping motion reached a full stroke at approximately 38 °C. By dispersing multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) into the material, the overall response time of the gripping motion decreases by approximately 2-fold. Device manipulations such as the gripping motion, translational motion, and rotational motion are also successfully demonstrated on a polyvinyl chloride (PVC) tube and in a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) microfluidic channel.