Directional Growth of cm-Long PLGA Nanofibers by a Simple and Fast Wet-Processing Method

The development of aligned nanofibers as useful scaffolds for tissue engineering is an actively sought‐for research objective. Here, we propose a novel improvement of an existing self‐assembly‐based nanofabrication technique (ASB‐SANS). This improvement, which we termed Directional ASB‐SANS, allows one to produce cm2‐large domains of highly aligned poly(lactic‐co‐glycolic acid) (PLGA) nanofibers in a rapid, inexpensive, and easy way. The so‐grown aligned PLGA nanofibers exhibited remarkable adhesion to different substrates (glass, polyimide, and Si/SiOx), even when immersed in PBS solution and kept at physiological temperature (37 °C) for up to two weeks. Finally, the Directional ASB‐SANS technique allowed us to grow PLGA fibers also on highly heterogeneous substrates such as polyimide‐based, gold‐coated flexible electrodes. These results suggest the viability of Directional ASB‐SANS method for realizing bio-compatible/bioresorbable, nanostructured coatings, potentially suitable for neural interface systems.