Oriented collagen films with high Young's modulus by self-assembly on micrometer grooved polydimethylsiloxane

Abstract

We report on the fabrication of oriented collagen films by drying a dilute collagen solution on a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) substrate with a micrometer grooved surface. The resultant films show optical and mechanical anisotropy along the groove direction, and have a high mechanical strength with Young's modulus of 2.3 GPa. This process might enable collagen materials to be applied to anisotropic biocompatible substrates, large-area functional scaffolds, and soft robotic materials.