The Micro-Nano Innovation Lab ("mini lab") investigates multidisciplinary approaches to develop new intelligent sensing and robotic strategies in micro/nano scales.

Head of Group

Dr Jang Ah Kim

B414A Bessemer Building
South Kensington Campus

 

What we do

The Micro-Nano Innovation Lab ("mini lab") investigates multidisciplinary approaches to develop new intelligent sensing and robotic strategies in micro/nano scales. We study nanotechnology, light-matter interactions, micro-particle dynamics, microscale fluid dynamics, and bioengineering to reach our goal. The research involves the design and manufacture of micro/nano systems for diagnostics (e.g. infections, cancer, neurodegenerative diseases) and microscopic therapies/surgeries (e.g. localised drug delivery, novel minimally invasive procedures).

Why it is important?

Timely identification of illnesses, less intrusive interventions, and precise/personalised treatments in challenging areas within our bodies, like narrow blood vessels, are essential technologies for improved healthcare management. The foundation for empowering these technologies lies in the development of devices capable of sensitively detecting disruptions in microenvironments that impact normal physiology and of precisely addressing these issues via targeted drug delivery, surgery, etc. at the cellular and molecular levels (micro/nano scales). Understanding the pathophysiology and engineering of the designs and functionalities of such devices accordingly is, thus, vital to enhancing current medical technology. Also, this has the potential to drive the development of advanced medical micro-robots with integrated sensing and therapeutic capabilities, offering new opportunities for future advancements in healthcare.

How can it benefit patients?

Early detection of diseases followed by minimally invasive, targeted and personalised therapy can have evident advantages for patients in terms of prognosis, health management, and economic implications. First, it can reduce excessive physical and biochemical alterations to the microenvironments, e.g., scarring after resection, antimicrobial resistance after antibiotics administration, etc., offering a better prognosis with fewer side effects. Micro/nanodevices can also be engineered to be implantable, enabling long-term health monitoring and treatment. Finally, the localised and precise manner of the technology allows efficient planning of the optimal procedures and accurate dosage, resulting in reduced cost.

Meet the team

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  • Journal article
    Dugasani SR, Gnapareddy B, Kim JA, Yoo S, Hwang T, Kim T, Park SHet al., 2017,

    Structural stability and electrical characteristic of DNA lattices doped with lanthanide ions

    , Current Applied Physics, Vol: 17, Pages: 1409-1414, ISSN: 1567-1739
  • Journal article
    Shinde M, Qureshi N, Rane S, Kim JA, Kim T, Amalnerkar Det al., 2017,

    Instantaneous Synthesis of Faceted Iron Oxide Nanostructures Using Microwave Solvothermal Assisted Combustion Technique

    , JOURNAL OF NANOSCIENCE AND NANOTECHNOLOGY, Vol: 17, Pages: 5024-5030, ISSN: 1533-4880
  • Journal article
    Kim JA, Park K, Kim C, Kulkarni A, Kim Tet al., 2016,

    Optical contact force monitoring sensor for cardiac ablation catheters

    , Optik, Vol: 127, Pages: 11823-11827, ISSN: 0030-4026

    © 2016 Modern lifestyles can lead to various lifestyle diseases that have become the most threatening health issues to humans. In particular, heart disease is the leading global cause of death. To diagnose heart disease, cardiac catheterization is frequently conducted. The contact force between the tip of the catheter and tissue is very critical because it determines the success or failure of the procedure. In this work, an optical sensor composed of transparent, flexible, and stretchable PDMS layers forming an air cavity was developed and evaluated. The reflectance of the sensor varied with external applied force depending upon the gap between elastomeric layers placed on the catheter tip. The fabricated sensor showed very low minimum resolution (<0.1 gF), which is desired for the application. A wider dynamic range than that of the present sensor (0–0.6 gF), which is inadequate for the practical application, can be achieved by optimizing the thickness of the flexible layers.

  • Journal article
    Lim YT, Kim T, Kulkarni A, Kim Det al., 2016,

    High-Purity Amino-Functionalized Graphene Quantum Dots Derived from Graphene Hydrogel

    , Nano, Vol: 11, ISSN: 1793-2920

    © 2016 World Scientific Publishing Company. The unique properties of graphene quantum dots (GQDs) make them interesting candidate materials for innovative applications. Herein, we report a facile method to synthesize amino-functionalized graphene quantum dots (AF-GQDs) by a hydrothermal reaction. Graphene oxide (GO) was synthesized by Hummer's method where ultra-small GO sheets were obtained by a prolonged oxidation process followed by sonication using an ultrasonic probe. Subsequently, graphene hydrogel (GH) was also obtained by a hydrothermal synthesis method. Proper care was taken during synthesis to avoid contamination from water soluble impurities, which are present in the precursor, GO solution. Following the treatment of GH in ammonia, ultra-small amino-functionalized graphene fragments (AF-GQDs) were formed, which detached from the GH to eventually disperse evenly in the water without agglomerating. This modified synthesis process enables the formation of high-purity AF-GQDs (99.14%) while avoiding time-consuming synthesis procedures. Our finding shows that AF-GQDs with sizes less than 5nm were well dispersed. A strong photoluminescence (PL) emission at ∼410nm with 10% PL quantum yield was also observed. These AF-GQDs can be used in many bio applications in view of their low cytotoxicity and strong fluorescence that can be applied to cell imaging.

  • Journal article
    Qin H, Hwang T, Ahn C, Kim JA, Jin Y, Cho Y, Shin C, Kim Tet al., 2016,

    Chemical Amination via Cycloaddition of Graphene for Use in a Glucose Sensor.

    , J Nanosci Nanotechnol, Vol: 16, Pages: 5034-5037, ISSN: 1533-4880

    Graphene was chemically aminated via cycloaddition. Aziridine-ring linkages were formed by covalently modifying the C-C double bonds in graphene. The aminated graphene presents an enhanced hydrophilicity, the contact angle with water decreases from 80.5 degrees to 58.5 degrees. And the conductivity of aminated graphene exhibits exponential decay as the reaction time increase. If the reaction time is 90 min, the resistance of aminated graphene was increased from -32 Ω to -2744 Ω. Because the amino group has good biocompatibility, the aminated graphene is designed for use as an enzyme sensor platform, such as glucose sensor based on glucose oxidase. The aminated graphene exhibited a good detection response for glucose. The increase in device current is about 12% in 1.2 mg/mL glucose solution.

  • Journal article
    Dugasani SR, Hwang T, Kim JA, Gnapareddy B, Kim T, Park SHet al., 2016,

    Metal electrode dependent field effect transistors made of lanthanide ion-doped DNA crystals

    , JOURNAL OF PHYSICS D-APPLIED PHYSICS, Vol: 49, ISSN: 0022-3727
  • Conference paper
    Kim JA, Kulkarni A, Kim C, Park K, Kim Tet al., 2016,

    Fiber optic lateral coupling force sensor for biomedical applications

    , 30th Eurosensors Conference, Publisher: ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV, Pages: 1227-1230, ISSN: 1877-7058
  • Journal article
    Kim M, Min T, Kwon O-K, Kim H, Seto T, Kim Y, Kim JA, Kim Tet al., 2015,

    Numerical study on proximal ischemia

    , JOURNAL OF MECHANICAL SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, Vol: 29, Pages: 5523-5529, ISSN: 1738-494X
  • Journal article
    Gnapareddy B, Ahn SJ, Dugasani SR, Kim JA, Amin R, Mitta SB, Vellampatti S, Kim B, Kulkarni A, Kim T, Yun K, LaBean TH, Park SHet al., 2015,

    Coverage percentage and raman measurement of cross-tile and scaffold cross-tile based DNA nanostructures

    , COLLOIDS AND SURFACES B-BIOINTERFACES, Vol: 135, Pages: 677-681, ISSN: 0927-7765
  • Journal article
    Vellampatti S, Mitta SB, Kim JA, Hwang T, Dugasani SR, Kim T, Park SHet al., 2015,

    Streptavidin bound DNA open tube and Zn<SUP>2+</SUP>-doped DNA open lattice

    , CURRENT APPLIED PHYSICS, Vol: 15, Pages: 851-856, ISSN: 1567-1739

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