Micro-/Nano-robotics and Small-scale Manipulation
Micro-/Nano-robots are artificial machines that can perform complex mechanical tasks at the length scale smaller than 1 mm. It consists of two main categories: 1) Untethered machines that have characteristic size smaller than 1 mm and are powered, actuated and controlled wirelessly by physical or chemical fields, for instance, magnetic micro-swimmers with rotating flagella or beating cilia to swim in fluids, and Janus micro-motors generate asymmetric chemical field to propel; 2) Large-scale robotic systems with the end-effectors that are capable of precise motion at nano- to micro-meter regime. For example, micro-manipulators for single cells or inside an SEM (Scanning Electron Microscope). Micro-/nano-robots hold great potential in numerous applications, including targeted drug delivery and minimally-invasive surgery in medicine, single cell manipulation in biology, and highly-parallel microfabrication and assembly in industry. Despite rapid advances of the field in recent years, many technical challenges still remain, for instance, the schemes for high-energy-density wireless power transfer through the human body, new materials for efficient micro-actuators and sensors, fabrication and assembly methods for designer 3D micro-/nano-structures, and intelligent control methods for an individual robot or swarm robots.
The purpose of this special issue is to collect the latest development in micro-/nano-robotics and their applications. We welcome original manuscripts with new designs, fabrication methods, actuation and sensing mechanisms, control schemes, as well as applications in the field of micro-/nano-robotics. Review articles summarizing the current state-of-the-art in the field are also welcome.
The exploration of surfaces, interfaces, nanostructures and thin films using:
- Micro-/nano-swimmers
- Janus micro-/nano-motors
- Low-Reynolds hydrodynamics and propulsion
- Wireless micro-actuation
- Friction and micro-manipulations
- 3D Micro-/nano-fabrication methods
- Small-scale sensors for robotics
- Self-assembly and assembly at small scales
- Swarm micro-robotics
- Intelligent control of small-scale robots
- Mechanical systems and control systems for micro-manipulations
- Applications of micro-/nano-robotics
Guest Editors
Tian Qiu, University of Stuttgart, Germany
Prof. Longqiu Li, Harbin Institute of Technology, China
Submission Instructions:
Manuscripts should be no more than 25 pages of A4 paper (including figures and tables). Text should be printed on one side only and be double-spaced. Interested authors are welcome to email their tentative titles and abstracts to nanope@tju.edu.cn. Full electronic manuscripts (MS-Word, or PDF file) should be submitted via the NPE online system; please select ‘Special Issue on Flexible MEMS Sensors and Systems’. All manuscripts must be prepared using the Guide for Authors and will be reviewed by at least two referees.