Magnetic Nozzle‐Free Embedded 3D (MagNoFE3D) Printing

Abstract The functional principle behind extrusion‐based printing is the capability of flowing material through a nozzle on demand, which must solidify upon deposition, a behavior exhibited only by some materials. Embedded printing offers a solution to maintain shape fidelity during the deposition of a wider range of materials. However, the use of a moving nozzle in a support bath can lead to bath disturbance and the spreading of the ink. In this study, a novel embedded printing technique that eliminates the need for a nozzle by employing a magnetic sphere as the plotting moiety is introduced. The externally steered sphere creates a path by locally fluidizing the bath, allowing the simultaneously injected ink to flow into the space behind it. The method is benchmarked using water as an ink, achieving free‐form printing without additional stabilization methods. The creation of solid structures is also demonstrated by printing a photocurable ink that is crosslinked and removed from the bath. Moreover, the plotting magnet can be incorporated into the printed part during the crosslinking, thus giving place to a magnetically responsive structure. This advancement paves the way for innovations in fields such as tissue engineering and microrobotics by enabling the fabrication of intricate and functional designs.