Poly(vinyl alcohol) as a structure release layer for the microfabrication of polymer composite structures

While lift-off techniques are common in the fabrication of hard, silicon-based microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), these techniques are not yet in widespread use in soft lithography, where polymer materials are used to fabricate MEMS devices for biological applications (bioMEMS). We present fabrication steps that allow us to make use of poly(vinyl alcohol) as a structure release agent in bioMEMS microfabrication. The release method offers a simple, cost effective and reliable way to release microfabricated structures that need to be bonded to other structures or are already bonded to them. We use this technique to release discs made of SU-8 that are attached to a vertical cylindrical microcantilever array that is replica molded using polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS). This approach may be used to release structures made from a variety of materials that are not compatible with typical lift-off chemistries, although we address only SU-8 and PDMS in this technical note.