Singapore-MIT Alliance (SMA)

- Manufacturing Systems and Technology Programme

 

Focusing on micro- and nano-manufacturing.

 

Research opportunities in Manufacturing Systems and Technology (MST) in polymer-based micro and nano-devices.

 

TASKS/PROJECT AREAS

 

1.      MATERIALS: Develop engineering-science-based processing procedures for producing polymer-based micro- and nano-structures

1.1.   Rheological behavior of the uncured elastomers and Curing Schedules for elastomers

1.2.   Nonlinear large-deformation elastic response and failure of elastomers

1.3.   Behavior of amorphous polymers above and below their glass-transition temperatures

1.4.   Effects of tooling and process conditions on optical characteristic of elastomers and polymers

1.5.   Demolding:  surface adhesion and release mechanics

1.6.   Interlayer Bonding chemistry and mechanics

1.7.   Relationship of fluidic and optical performance specifications to manufacturing specifications

1.8.   Surface modification protocols for polymers            

     

2.      PROCESSING: Develop fundamental methods for design of high-throughput machines for micro-casting, micro-forging and micro-injection molding suitable for commercial scale production

2.1.   Production methods for nano/micro-scale features on master-molds and replicas

2.2.   Mold finishing and coating analysis and life estimation

2.3.   Process mechanics for micro-casting, hot micro-embossing,  micro-injection molding equipment design

2.4.   Design of mechanical and thermal environment

2.5.   Control systems for rapid and repeatable operation

2.6.   Design of multilayer alignment and bonding equipment

2.7.   Methods for feature-to-feature alignment with soft materials

 

3.      MANUFATURING: Develop methods for ensuring optimal process performance in a large scale, high volume, high flexibility manufacturing environment

3.1.   Promulgation of metrology standards for microfluidic devices

3.2.   Examination of optical- and mechanical (e.g., AFM) - based approaches for in-process measurement

3.3.   Adaptation of nano-resolution methods to production inspection

3.4.   Development of typical process histories and statistical performance

3.5.   In-process, real-time product-level feedback for variation control

3.6.   Development of performance standards

3.7.   Propagation of variation through multilayer processes

 

If interested, please email:

 

            Professor C Y Yue

            SMA-MST Co-Program Chair

            School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering,

Nanyang Technological University

50 Nanyang Avenue

Singapore 639798                   

 

Email: mcyyue@ntu.edu.sg