Here at RØDE our Microfab Jetlab-II machine is critical for research and development on our microphone transducers. The accuracy and precision of Microfab’s Jetlab-II is second to none, we can achieve the dispensing of 10µm diameter droplets of fluid with micron positional accuracy. With the inbuilt stroboscopic imaging on the Jetlab-II we can ensure we maintain a high level of repeatability with these droplets, allowing us to make the most repeatable transducers in our clean room facility.
Luke Hamilton
Head of Technical Manufacturing
RØDE, Australia
My group specializes in developing reactive inks for device applications. The broad material compatibility of the MicroFab ink-jet dispenser nozzles and the Jetlab II Precision printer have enabled us to print any set of ink chemistries that we’ve been able to throw at it. MicroFab’s support has been top-notch and they always get back to us with detailed answers or solutions. For example, they wrote a program for us that would take 3D STL files, slice them into 2D .bmps, and then stitch them together through a script so that we can print a complete device just from a few STL files.
I highly recommend getting the digital pressure controller; it is well worth the added expense. Also, get the Minstac in-line filters and the Micro-90 cleaning solution. Nozzle clogs are likely to be your biggest hurdle starting up and those items really help.
Owen Hildreth, Ph.D.
School for Engineering of Matter, Transport, and Energy
Arizona State University
Georgia Tech’s Jetlab II is part of a multi-user facility where it has been employed for a wide variety of projects by more than 20 people over the last 3 years. These projects range from depositing proteins for biomedical studies to printing metallic ink for flexible electronics. Training of new users is easy because the controls and software are designed to accommodate flexibility. Working with tools and equipment in such a diverse environment can often be a challenge, but having MicroFab’s support has been instrumental in our success. We have always obtained a rapid and informative reply to our inquiries about software, hardware, or applications from Microfab’s informed and friendly engineering staff.
David S. Gottfried, Ph.D.
Institute for Electronics and Nanotechnology
Georgia Institute of Technology
Microfab Technologies make inkjet-printing easy with their simple yet elegant printer systems. The flexibility in the hardware allows us to efficiently print a wide variety of functional inks for numerous applications ranging from energy storage to flexible electronics. The after-sales service is extraordinary and the technical support staff is very helpful, committed and respond promptly to our queries.
Unnat S. Bhansali, Ph.D
King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Saudi Arabia
As someone who has been working in applied inkjet printing research for the last ten years, I chose MicroFab's system for my lab' because it was the most versatile system. The glass nozzles, the piezo-actuator and the sophisticated waveform control allows me and my co-workers to jet a wide range of experimental inks. Be it a suspension of cells, a metal solution, a suspension of inorganic nanoparticles, MicroFab's JetLab system gives me superior service and excellent value for money.
MicroFab and their UK partner, Horizon Instruments, are excellent examples of what engineering companies should offer. They are very attentive to their customers, very informative and I recommend them highly.
In the lab, we're dealing with experimental materials and what we want is a machine that fits the ink as opposed to an ink that fits the machine.
Patrick J. Smith, Ph.D
Department of Mechanical Engineering
University of Sheffield, England
Video Link on their use of Jetlab 4 system: www.youtube.com/watch?v=tagP1XhWPI8
Our interaction with MicroFab Technologies since inception has been a fruitful one and led to the procurement of two custom inkjet systems over a span of 7 years. The scientists and technical staff were thoroughly knowledgeable of the state-of-the-art in the inkjet field and were involved in configuring the machine specifications for our application. The professional interaction during the on-site training was vital in unfolding different machine capabilities to suite our research needs. We are impressed with the after-sales service, particularly in terms of a prompt response to our queries.
Salil Desai, Ph.D.
Integrated Nano & Bio Manufacturing Laboratory
North Carolina A&T State University
We have been very satisfied with the Jetlab II. Microfab has always been quick to respond and very helpful. We are currently using our Jetlab once or twice per week to mainly deposit polymers and low molecular weight solids dissolved in solution. Please extend my compliments to your staff and colleagues for the great work!
Jennifer Stepnowski, Ph.D.
US Naval Research Lab (contractor)
With the purchase of Jetlab 4 we have been able to homogeneously print catalyst inks on polymeric membranes and carbon materials used in fuel cells in a controlled way, minimizing the waste of expensive noble metals. Coming from the Academic side, which often needs unconventionally solutions to unconventional problems, in MicroFab we have always been met with a very professional, fast and friendly service.
Horacio Corti, Ph.D
Comisión Nacional de Energia Atómica (CNEA)
University of Buenos Aires, Argentina
We were seeking a robust miniaturization process monitored and characterized by a vision system enabling dimensional analysis. Due to the genuine support of the entire team, we had to make minimal modifications to our bio-ink thus preserving the integrity and viability of the cells and enzymes printed at the initially predicted throughput. Microfab service philosophy is based on treating the customer well regardless of the budget size. In addition, the response time for trouble-shooting is very fast.
Maryam Mobed-Miremadi, Ph.D.
College of Engineering
San Jose State University
Before we found MicroFab, we have been looking for a long time for a way to dispense tiny amounts of coating material onto our new product. It is indeed a difficult task because the coating area is very small (square microns), so very small droplets are needed. MicroFab's dispensing device helped us fulfill this task. The droplets’ size and shape can be changed by choosing different diameter orifice dispensing devices and setting different software parameters, which is very convenient. The most important thing is that the subsystem of MicroFab can be integrated into our own equipment and the command set of JetDrive can be used in our own program to control the coating process.
Jacky Zhang
Senior R&D Engineer
MicroPort Medical Co., Ltd., Shanghai, China