micronanopatterned

Micronanopatterned describes surfaces engineered with topographical features that span both micrometer and nanometer scales. The dual-scale patterning creates hierarchical textures that can influence mechanical, optical, chemical, and biological interactions at interfaces.

Fabrication techniques include photolithography, electron-beam lithography, nanoimprint lithography, soft lithography, laser-based micromachining, and self-assembly processes. Often a combination of microfabrication and nanofabrication steps is used to create features ranging from tens of nanometers to several micrometers. Materials range from polymers and silicon to metals and ceramics.

Common patterns include micro-grooves, micro-pillars, and wells decorated with nano-scale roughness, enabling properties like directional cell guidance, altered wettability, light trapping, or enhanced sensor sensitivity. The design aims to exploit interactions across scales, such as how a nano-textured surface affects protein adsorption or how micro-features steer cell adhesion.

Applications span biomedicine, where micronanopatterns can influence stem cell differentiation and implant integration; optics and photonics, where hierarchical textures control light scattering or antireflection behavior; tribology and energy, where roughness scales reduce wear or modify friction; and microfluidics or biosensing, where patterning improves signal localization and flow behavior.

Characterization methods include atomic force microscopy and scanning electron microscopy to resolve nanoscale and microscale features, profilometry to measure surface roughness, and contact angle goniometry to assess wettability. Durability, manufacturability, and reproducibility remain important challenges for large-area and commercial deployment.