Modeling of Bubble Expansion-Induced Cell Mechanical Profile in Laser-Assisted Cell Direct Writing

Abstract

Cell damage due to the mechanical impact during laser-assisted cell direct writing has been observed and is a possible hurdle for broad applications of fragile cell direct writing. The objective of this study is to numerically investigate the bubble expansion-induced cell mechanical loading profile in laser-assisted cell direct writing. Some conclusions have been drawn as follows. The cell velocity increases initially and then smoothes out gradually with a constant ejection velocity. Both the cell acceleration and pressure can be very high at the beginning period of bubble expansion and then quickly approach zero in an oscillation manner. A high viscosity can lead to an observable velocity increment at the initial stage, but the ejection velocity decreases. The pressure magnitude decreases when the cell-bubble distance is large, and a larger initial pressure induces a larger cell pressure as expected. This study serves as a foundation to further investigate the cell damage mechanism in laser-assisted cell direct writing to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of cell direct writing techniques.