scholarly journals Disposable Optical Stretcher Fabricated by Microinjection Moulding

Micromachines ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (8) ◽  
pp. 388 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gianluca Trotta ◽  
Rebeca Martínez Vázquez ◽  
Annalisa Volpe ◽  
Francesco Modica ◽  
Antonio Ancona ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Capillary Tube ◽  
Microfluidic Channels ◽  
Lab On Chip ◽  
Femtosecond Laser Micromachining ◽  
Electro Discharge Machining ◽  
Optical Stretcher ◽  
Real Mass ◽  
On Chip ◽  
Manufacturing Technologies ◽  
Microinjection Moulding

Microinjection moulding combined with the use of removable inserts is one of the most promising manufacturing processes for microfluidic devices, such as lab-on-chip, that have the potential to revolutionize the healthcare and diagnosis systems. In this work, we have designed, fabricated and tested a compact and disposable plastic optical stretcher. To produce the mould inserts, two micro manufacturing technologies have been used. Micro electro discharge machining (µEDM) was used to reproduce the inverse of the capillary tube connection characterized by elevated aspect ratio. The high accuracy of femtosecond laser micromachining (FLM) was exploited to manufacture the insert with perfectly aligned microfluidic channels and fibre slots, facilitating the final composition of the optical manipulation device. The optical stretcher operation was tested using microbeads and red blood cells solutions. The prototype presented in this work demonstrates the feasibility of this approach, which should guarantee real mass production of ready-to-use lab-on-chip devices.

scholarly journals Disposable Optical Stretcher Fabricated by Micro Injection Moulding

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gianluca Trotta ◽  
Rebeca Martínez Vázquez ◽  
Annalisa Volpe ◽  
Francesco Modica ◽  
Antonio Ancona ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Capillary Tube ◽  
Lab On A Chip ◽  
Microfluidic Channels ◽  
Micro Injection Moulding ◽  
Electro Discharge Machining ◽  
Optical Stretcher ◽  
Real Mass ◽  
Manufacturing Technologies ◽  
Final Composition ◽  
Disposable Plastic

Micro Injection molding combined with the use of removable inserts is one of the most promising manufacturing process for microfluidic devices, such as Lab-on-a-chip, that have the potential to revolutionize the healthcare and diagnosis system. In this work we have designed, fabricated and tested a compact and disposable plastic optical stretcher. To produce the mould inserts, two micro manufacturing technologies have been used. Micro Electro Discharge machining was used to reproduce the inverse of the capillary tube connection characterized by high aspect ratio. Thanks to the high accuracy of femtosecond laser machining, instead, we manufactured insert with perfectly aligned microfluidic channels and fiber slots, facilitating the final composition of the optical manipulation device. The optical stretcher operation is tested using microbeads and red blood cells solutions. The prototype presented in this work demonstrates the feasibility of this approach that should guarantee a real mass production of ready-to-use- Lab-on-a-chip.

scholarly journals Design Methodology of Passive In-Line Relays for Molecular Communication in Flow-Induced Microfluidic Channel

Biosensors ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 65
Author(s):  
Puneet Manocha ◽  
Gitanjali Chandwani
Keyword(s):  
Communication System ◽  
Communication Systems ◽  
Microfluidic Channel ◽  
Microfluidic Channels ◽  
Molecular Communication ◽  
External Energy ◽  
Lab On Chip ◽  
Molecular Communication Systems ◽  
Macro Scale ◽  
On Chip

Molecular communication is a bioinspired communication that enables macro-scale, micro-scale and nano-scale devices to communicate with each other. The molecular communication system is prone to severe signal attenuation, dispersion and delay, which leads to performance degradation as the distance between two communicating devices increases. To mitigate these challenges, relays are used to establish reliable communication in microfluidic channels. Relay assisted molecular communication systems can also enable interconnection among various entities of the lab-on-chip for sharing information. Various relaying schemes have been proposed for reliable molecular communication systems, most of which lack practical feasibility. Thus, it is essential to design and develop relays that can be practically incorporated into the microfluidic channel. This paper presents a novel design of passive in-line relay for molecular communication system that can be easily embedded in the microfluidic channel and operate without external energy. Results show that geometric modification in the microfluidic channel can act as a relay and restore the degraded signal up-to 28%.

scholarly journals Silicon-Quartz Microcapillary Opto-Fluidic Platform Obtained by CMOS-Compatible Die to Wafer 200 mm Dual Bonding Process

Proceedings ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (13) ◽  
pp. 1018
Author(s):  
Giuseppe Fiorentino ◽  
Ben Jones ◽  
Sophie Roth ◽  
Edith Grac ◽  
Murali Jayapala ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Adhesive Bonding ◽  
System Analysis ◽  
Quartz Substrate ◽  
Microfluidic System ◽  
Bonding Process ◽  
Microfluidic Channels ◽  
Fully Integrated ◽  
Lab On Chip ◽  
Human Blood Cells ◽  
On Chip

A composite, capillary-driven microfluidic system suitable for transmitted light microscopy of cells (e.g., red and white human blood cells) is fabricated and demonstrated. The microfluidic system consists of a microchannels network fabricated in a photo-patternable adhesive polymer on a quartz substrate, which, by means of adhesive bonding, is then connected to a silicon microfluidic die (for processing of the biological sample) and quartz die (to form the imaging chamber). The entire bonding process makes use of a very low temperature budget (200 °C). In this demonstrator, the silicon die consists of microfluidic channels with transition structures to allow conveyance of fluid utilizing capillary forces from the polymer channels to the silicon channels and back to the polymer channels. Compared to existing devices, this fully integrated platform combines on the same substrate silicon microfluidic capabilities with optical system analysis, representing a portable and versatile lab-on-chip device.

scholarly journals Polylactic acid, a sustainable, biocompatible, transparent substrate material for Organ-On-Chip, and Microfluidic applications

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alfredo E. Ongaro ◽  
Davide Di Giuseppe ◽  
Ali Kermanizadeh ◽  
Allende Miguelez Crespo ◽  
Arianna Mencatti ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Animal Models ◽  
Polylactic Acid ◽  
Small Molecule ◽  
Point Of Care ◽  
High Volume ◽  
Substrate Material ◽  
Lab On Chip ◽  
Transparent Substrate ◽  
On Chip ◽  
Microinjection Moulding

AbstractOrgan-on-chips are miniaturised devices aiming at replacing animal models for drug discovery, toxicology and studies of complex biological phenomena. The field of Organ-On-Chip has grown exponentially, and has led to the formation of companies providing commercial Organ-On-Chip devices. Yet, it may be surprising to learn that the majority of these commercial devices are made from Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), a silicone elastomer that is widely used in microfluidic prototyping, but which has been proven difficult to use in industrial settings and poses a number of challenges to experimentalists, including leaching of uncured oligomers and uncontrolled adsorption of small compounds. To alleviate these problems, we propose a new substrate for organ-on-chip devices: Polylactic Acid (PLA). PLA is a material derived from renewable resources, and compatible with high volume production technologies, such as microinjection moulding. PLA can be formed into sheets and prototyped into desired devices in the research lab. In this article we uncover the suitability of Polylactic acid as a substrate material for Microfluidic cell culture and Organ-on-a-chip applications. Surface properties, biocompatibility, small molecule adsorption and optical properties of PLA are investigated and compared with PDMS and other reference polymers.SignificanceOrgan-On-Chip (OOC) technology is a powerful and emerging tool that allows the culture of cells constituting an organ and enables scientists, researchers and clinicians to conduct more physiologically relevant experiments without using expensive animal models. Since the emergence of the first OOC devices 10 years ago, the translation from research to market has happened relatively fast. To date, at least 28 companies are proposing body and tissue on-a chip devices. The material of choice in most commercial organ-on-chip platforms is an elastomer, Polydymethyloxane (PDMS), commonly used in microfluidic R&D. PDMS is however subject to poor reproducibility, and absorbs small molecule compounds unless treated. In this study we show that PLA overcomes all the drawbacks related to PDMS: PLA can be prototyped in less than 45 minutes from design to test, is transparent, not autofluorescent, and biocompatible. PLA-based microfluidic platforms have the potential to transform the OOC industry as well as to provide a sustainable alternative for future Lab-On-Chip and point-of-care devices.

High-throughput acoustofluidic microchannels for single cell rotation

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Junwen Zhu ◽  
Qiqian Zhang ◽  
Fei Liang ◽  
Yongxiang Feng ◽  
Wenhui Wang
Keyword(s):  
High Throughput ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Rotation Velocity ◽  
Microfluidic Channels ◽  
Lab On Chip ◽  
Dead End ◽  
Cell Rotation ◽  
Fabrication Procedure ◽  
On Chip ◽  
Highly Uniform

Abstract There is a growing desire for cell rotation in the field of biophysics, bioengineering and biomedicine. We herein present novel microfluidic channels for simultaneous high-throughput cell self-rotation using local circular streaming generated by ultrasonic wave excited bubble arrays. The bubble traps achieve high homogeneity of liquid-gas interface by setting capillary valves at the entrances of dead-end bubble trappers orthogonal to the main microchannel. In such a highly uniform bubble array, rotation at different fields of bubble-relevant vortices is considered equal and interconvertible. The device is compatible with cells of various size and retains manageable rotation velocity when actuated by signals of varying frequency and voltage. Experimental observations were confirmed consistent with theoretical estimation and numerical simulation. Comparing with the conventional approaches of cell rotation, our device has multiple merits such as high throughput, low cost and simple fabrication procedure, and high compatibility for lab-on-chip integration. Therefore, the platform holds a promise in cell observation, medicine development and biological detection.

A Fast Computational Method for Particle Dynamics in Dielectrophoretic Lab-on-Chip Systems

2007 ◽  
Author(s):  
Indranil Chowdhury ◽  
Vikram Jandhyala ◽  
John D. Rockway
Keyword(s):  
Field Distribution ◽  
Iterative Solvers ◽  
Computational Method ◽  
Microfluidic Channels ◽  
Computational Domain ◽  
Time Step ◽  
Lab On Chip ◽  
Time Stepping ◽  
Fast Solver ◽  
On Chip

An accelerated boundary element method (BEM) is proposed for predicting the motion of bio-particles under combined electromagnetic and fluidic force fields. Many Lab-on-chip (LoC) designs are based on dielectrophoretic (DEP) manipulation of polarized species inside microfluidic channels. The BEM approach presented here relies entirely on modeling the surface of the computational domain, significantly reducing the number of unknowns when compared to volume-based methods. Additionally, the need for re-meshing the whole domain at each time-step of particle movement is prevented. A coupled circuit-EM formulation is presented for accurate prediction of dielectophoretic field distribution due to on-chip electrodes. This allows the circuit control of the resulting electromagnetic fields. Next, BEM formulations for predicting DEP and fluidic traction forces on arbitrarily shaped bio-particles are presented. EM fields produced by the electrodes induce the DEP forces, while the fluid flow is driven by a pressure gradient across the channel. The resultant motion of the subjected particles is studied using a simple time-stepping algorithm. The algorithm has a time complexity of O(N3), where N is the number of unknowns), which leads to a large bottleneck during simulation of each time step. This problem is addressed by implementing oct-tree based O(N) multilevel iterative solvers. The methodology is used to study the field distribution due to distributed electrode systems and particle motion in fluidic channels. Evidence of O(N) behavior of the fast solver is presented. The resulting simulator can be used to study complicated distributed structures and explore new LoC design ideas.

scholarly journals Split Aptamers Immobilized on Polymer Brushes Integrated in a Lab-on-Chip System Based on an Array of Amorphous Silicon Photosensors: A Novel Sensor Assay

Materials ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (23) ◽  
pp. 7210
Author(s):  
Manasa Nandimandalam ◽  
Francesca Costantini ◽  
Nicola Lovecchio ◽  
Lorenzo Iannascoli ◽  
Augusto Nascetti ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Amorphous Silicon ◽  
Binding Affinity ◽  
Polymer Brushes ◽  
Limit Of Detection ◽  
Microfluidic Channels ◽  
Fluorescent Intensity ◽  
Lab On Chip ◽  
Target Molecule ◽  
On Chip ◽  
Aptamer Sequence

Innovative materials for the integration of aptamers in Lab-on-Chip systems are important for the development of miniaturized portable devices in the field of health-care and diagnostics. Herein we highlight a general method to tailor an aptamer sequence in two subunits that are randomly immobilized into a layer of polymer brushes grown on the internal surface of microfluidic channels, optically aligned with an array of amorphous silicon photosensors for the detection of fluorescence. Our approach relies on the use of split aptamer sequences maintaining their binding affinity to the target molecule. After binding the target molecule, the fragments, separately immobilized to the brush layer, form an assembled structure that in presence of a “light switching” complex [Ru(phen)2(dppz)]2+, emit a fluorescent signal detected by the photosensors positioned underneath. The fluorescent intensity is proportional to the concentration of the target molecule. As proof of principle, we selected fragments derived from an aptamer sequence with binding affinity towards ATP. Using this assay, a limit of detection down to 0.9 µM ATP has been achieved. The sensitivity is compared with an assay where the original aptamer sequence is used. The possibility to re-use both the aptamer assays for several times is demonstrated.

An In-Plane Nanofluidic Nanoplasmonics-Based Platform for Biodetection

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jianjun Wei ◽  
Hongjun Song ◽  
Sameer Singhal ◽  
Matthew Kofke ◽  
Madu Mendis ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Metal Films ◽  
Microfluidic Channels ◽  
Parallel Transmission ◽  
Lab On Chip ◽  
Sensing Technology ◽  
Sensing Platform ◽  
Confined Flow ◽  
Transmission Surface Plasmon Resonance ◽  
On Chip ◽  
Integrated Device

This paper reports a new nanofluidic plasmonics-based sensing platform which can be readily integrated with microfluidics devices, and potentially enable an in-parallel transmission surface plasmon resonance (SPR), lab-on-chip sensing technology. The technology overcomes the current SPR size limitations through a combination of nanofluidics and nanoplasmonics in a rationally designed in-plane nanoslit array capable of concurrent plasmonic sensing and confined-flow for analyte delivery. This work is leveraged on our previous work of using nanoslit metal films for SPR sensing [1, 2], and the in-plane nanofluidic nanoplasmonic platform is different from recently reported nanohole-based nanofluidic plasmonics sensors [3, 4]. The work presented here includes an integrated device with nanofluidic nanoplasmonic arrays interfacing with microfluidic channels, and preliminary findings, from both theoretical and experimental fronts, of the device for bio-sensing.

scholarly journals Imaging through scattering microfluidic channels by digital holography for information recovery in lab on chip

2013 ◽  
Vol 21 (20) ◽  
pp. 23985 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. Bianco ◽  
M. Paturzo ◽  
O. Gennari ◽  
A. Finizio ◽  
P. Ferraro
Keyword(s):  
Digital Holography ◽  
Microfluidic Channels ◽  
Lab On Chip ◽  
Information Recovery ◽  
On Chip
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