Micro printing: A scanning electron microscope image
shows a cell scaffold printed using Nanoscribe’s new device.
COMPUTING NEWS
Micro 3-D Printer Creates Tiny Structures in Seconds
Faster printing could see the technology move from research labs to industry.
By Prachi Patel on March 5, 2013
Nanoscribe, a spin-off from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in Germany, has developed a tabletop 3-D microprinter that can create complicated microstructures 100 times faster than is possible today. “If something took one hour to make, it now takes less than one minute,” says Michael Thiel, chief scientific officer at Nanoscribe.
While 3-D printing of toys, iPhone covers, and jewelry continues to grab headlines (see “The Difference Between Makers and Manufacturers”), much of 3-D printing’s impact could be at a much smaller scale. Micrometer-scale printing has shown promise for making medical and electronic devices.
Thiel says it should be possible to speed up his company’s microprinting technique even more in the future. Nanoscribe plans to start selling its machine in the second half of this year.
Read more: Nanoscribe Will Sell a Micro 3-D Printer That Creates Tiny Structures in Seconds | MIT Technology Review.
