New Sound-Based 3D Printing Method Enables Faster Microdevices
Mohsen Habibi, an assistant professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at the University of California, Davis, is part of a collaboration that has developed a new 3D printing technique that uses sound waves to directly print tiny structures onto soft polymers, such as silicone, with far greater precision than before.
The approach, called proximal sound printing, or PSP, was pioneered at Concordia University in Montreal, where Habibi spent nearly a decade as a researcher. The technique opens new possibilities for manufacturing microscale devices used in healthcare, environmental monitoring and advanced sensing. It is described in a paper, on which Habibi is a co-author, published in Nature.
“One of the major limitations of sound printing methods [is their] comparatively low printing resolution. With PSP, we have demonstrated that highly detailed components can be fabricated accurately using ultrasound waves,” Habibi said.
The technique uses focused ultrasound to trigger chemical reactions that solidify liquid polymers exactly where printing is needed. This work builds on the research team’s earlier breakthrough in direct sound printing, which first showed that ultrasound could be used to cure polymers on demand.
The PSP approach places the sound source much closer to the printing surface, allowing for far tighter control. The improved precision makes it possible to print complex microfluidic channels, flexible sensors and multi-material structures in a single process. In the future, the method could support faster prototyping of medical diagnostic devices, wearable technologies and soft robotic components, offering manufacturers a simpler and more versatile way to produce microscale systems.
“PSP represents a major step forward for sound printing, a technology still in its early stages,” Habibi said. “We hope this platform soon finds a home not only in academic research but also in widespread public use.”