Multimode SiC trampoline resonators manipulate microspheres to create Chladni figures

This digest paper describes the experimental demonstration of two dimensional (2D) microscale ‘Chladni figure’-like patterns [1] of populations of microspheres in liquid using SiC micromechanical resonators. SiC square trampoline resonators (size: 50µm×50µm) exhibit appreciable high frequency multimode resonances when operating in liquid. We are able to manipulate relatively small (1.7µm in diameter) and large (7.75µm in diameter) microspheres by resonant excitation of the trampolines and create a series of 2D microscale Chladni patterns (corresponding to specific mode shapes), from simple to complex. This SiC resonator platform may offer new opportunities for microparticle patterning by taking advantage of its straightforward device fabrication and engineerable multiple modes, and further facilitate cell manipulation, cellular interaction and behavior controlling, and other biophysical and biomedical studies in liquid.