Overall
- Language
- English
- Conflict of Interest
- In relation to this article, we declare that there is no conflict of interest.
- Publication history
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Received March 5, 2025
Revised April 10, 2025
Accepted June 11, 2025
Available online September 25, 2025
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This is an Open-Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/bync/3.0) which permits
unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Most Cited
Discontinuous Dewetting‑Based Synthesis of Monodisperse Polydimethylsiloxane Microparticles with Tunable Aqueous Dispersibility via Surface Engineering
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11814-025-00502-4
Abstract
Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) microparticles exhibit significant potential for biomedical applications owing to their biocompatibility,
chemical inertness, transparency, and ease of soft lithography-based fabrication. However, their high viscosity
and hydrophobicity make it difficult to use them in the form of particles in aqueous environments. In this study, we present
a novel and efficient methodology for fabricating uniform PDMS microparticles using a discontinuous dewetting (DD)
technique. Our approach employs a polyethylene glycol diacrylate mold coated with a superhydrophobic layer, enabling DD
over a broad viscosity range and achieving highly monodisperse particle production. To utilize them in an aqueous solution,
we implemented two surface modification strategies: a bovine serum albumin (BSA) treatment, and the formation of
“hydrogel skin”. Such strategies enhance their water wettability and the particle’s dispersion in an aqueous solution. Our
findings demonstrate the successful fabrication of monodisperse PDMS microparticles with diameters ranging from 200 to
1000 μm, which were well dispersed in organic or aqueous solutions. Our research would suggest a new strategy for how to
use PDMS in bioengineering. We anticipate that our PDMS microparticles offer significant potential in diagnostic, chemotaxis,
and therapeutic applications.

