Efficient nanoparticle filtering using bioinspired functional surfaces

We present the development of a novel integrated device for airborne nanoparticle filtering with bioinspired nanoscale functionality. The underlying idea is to investigate the principle of adherent surfaces, e.g. pollen, as a biological model and transfer this functionality into a technology using functionalized microstructured surfaces offering an efficient filtering method for nanoscale airborne particles. We investigated the different pollen species for their structural and biochemical surface properties to achieve bioinspired surface functionality on silicon surfaces. Depending on surface morphology, the adhesive properties of the surfaces towards aerosol particles could be directly influenced.