Multiphoton Lithography of Nanocrystalline Platinum and Palladium for Site-Specific Catalysis in 3D Microenvironments

Lauren D. Zarzar†, B. S. Swartzentruber‡, Jason C. Harper§, Darren R. Dunphy§, C. Jeffrey Brinker§, Joanna Aizenberg*†#, and Bryan Kaehr*§

^† Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, United States

Integration of catalytic nanostructured platinum and palladium within 3D microscale structures or fluidic environments is important for systems ranging from micropumps to microfluidic chemical reactors and energy converters. We report a straightforward procedure to fabricate microscale patterns of nanocrystalline platinum and palladium using multiphoton lithography. These materials display excellent catalytic, electrical, and electrochemical properties, and we demonstrate high-resolution integration of catalysts within 3D defined microenvironments to generate directed autonomous particle and fluid transport.