title: Micro- and nanofabrication methods in nanotechnological medical and pharmaceutical devices.
abstract: Micro- and nanofabrication techniques have revolutionized the pharmaceutical and medical fields as they offer the possibility for highly reproducible mass-fabrication of systems with complex geometries and functionalities, including novel drug delivery systems and bionsensors. The principal micro- and nanofabrication techniques are described, including photolithography, soft lithography, film deposition, etching, bonding, molecular self assembly, electrically induced nanopatterning, rapid prototyping, and electron, X-ray, colloidal monolayer, and focused ion beam lithography. Application of these techniques for the fabrication of drug delivery and biosensing systems including injectable, implantable, transdermal, and mucoadhesive devices is described.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical, Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin, TX, USA.
authors.forename: Tania
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Betancourt
authors.forename: Lisa
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Brannon-Peppas
mesh_terms: D001672:Biocompatible Materials / Q000737:chemistry*; D015374:Biosensing Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems / Q000379:methods*; D004345:Drug Industry / Q000379:methods*; D004867:Equipment Design; D019544:Equipment Failure Analysis; D049329:Nanostructures / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000627:therapeutic use* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D036103:Nanotechnology / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D001672:Biocompatible Materials