Mechanical property characterization of spatially-ordered laser-fabricated alginate microbead arrays

The mechanical properties of alginate microbeads affect resistance to loading, degradation kinetics, and cell behavior. At present, techniques are only available for analyzing single microbead constructs, which requires machinery with μN-level resolution. Herein, we utilize micro-compression technology, with mN-level resolution, to mechanically characterize laser-fabricated, spatially-ordered arrays of alginate microbeads. This novel technique provides Young's modulus values on the order of kPa; typical of alginate microbeads [1]. This method may be applied further to study the effects of tunable parameters on the mechanical properties of microbeads, or microcapsules.