Delivery and actuation of aerosolized microbots

For disease of the lung, the physical key to effective inhalation‐based therapy is size; too large (10′s of µm) and the particles or droplets do not remain suspended in air to reach deep within the lungs, too small (subµm) and they are simply exhaled without deposition. μ$\umu$Bots within this ideal low‐µm size range however are challenging to fabricate and would lead to devices that lack the speed and power necessary for performing work throughout the pulmonary network. To uncouple size from structure and function, here we demonstrate an approach where individual building blocks are aerosolized and subsequently assembled in situ into μ$\umu$bots capable of translation, drug delivery, and mechanical work deep within lung mimics. With this strategy, a variety of pulmonary diseases previously difficult to treat may now be receptive to μ$\umu$bot‐based therapies. For pulmonary drug delivery applications, superparamagnetic colloidal particles can be encapsulated in droplets and delivered through the air to form μ$\umu$wheels. Depending on the nature of the applied magnetic field, once delivered, these μ$\umu$wheels can be driven to either targeted locations or more broadly dispersed into distributed networks.