Mathematical Theory and Numerical Methods for Microscale Biomedical Devices

The Investigator and his colleagues study new active

materials and their possible use in micro-electro-mechanical

systems (MEMS) for biomedical applications. The research project

is motivated by the biomedical revolution based on the use of

emerging materials and emerging mathematical methods of analysis

and simulation for applications to noninvasive surgery and drug

delivery at nanoscale to milliscale. The work concerns the use of

small scale actuators based on smart materials, especially

shape-memory and magnetostrictive materials. They study the

growth of tissue on materials and the interactions with

surrounding tissue and biological fluids, as well as novel

designs of actuator systems. They consider remote actuation

based on the use of a magnetic field applied external to the

body, and they explore the possible use of MRI.

New active materials --- materials that can change shape

under moderate stimuli, for example --- hold great promise for

building MEMS (micro-electro-mechanical systems) for a variety of

applications. Opportunities in biomedical applications are

particularly intriguing; they include noninvasive surgery and

drug delivery at nanoscale to milliscale lengths. This project is

aimed at biomedical MEMS based on the use of new active

materials. The investigators study the properties of active

materials, the behaviors of MEMS that could be built with them,

and the interactions between the materials and surrounding

biological tissues and fluids. The work requires new mathematical

methods of analysis and simulation. Investigators focus on the

use of small scale actuators based on shape-memory and emerging

ferromagnetic shape-memory materials, energized by a remotely

applied magnetic field. They study the growth of tissue on the

materials and materials interactions with the elastoviscous

surrounding tissue, as well as novel designs of actuator systems

based on molecular beam epitaxial growth of films. The use of

MRI for simultaneous imaging and actuation is explored.