Rapid fabrication of microfluidic chips based on the simplest LED lithography

Li, Yue; Wu, Peng; Z, Luo; Ren, Yu-Xuan; Liao, Meixiang; Feng, Li Ying; Li, Yuting; He, Liqun

doi:10.1088/0960-1317/25/5/055020

Cited by 19 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…A programmable shutter timer is also useful for precise control of the exposure time. An even lower-cost solution (<$500) would be to replace the collimated light source with a simple UV lamp [18,19]. However, such light sources do not offer precise timing control and can lead to non-vertical sidewalls in thick photoresist films due to a lack of light collimation.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Further, the setup costs for DFR processing are significantly lower than that for liquid photoresists. Indeed, a number of investigators have begun reporting use of DFRs for MEMS (microelectromechanical systems) and microfluidic device fabrication, including electroplating molds, microchannels, digital microfluidic devices, or hybrid chips [17,18,19].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Rapid Prototyping of Soft Lithography Masters for Microfluidic Devices Using Dry Film Photoresist in a Non-Cleanroom Setting

et al. 2019

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Fabrication of microfluidic devices by soft lithography is by far the most popular approach due to simplicity and low cost. In this approach PDMS (polydimethylsiloxane) is cast on a photoresist master to generate replicas that are then sealed against glass slides using oxygen plasma. In this work, we demonstrated fabrication of soft photolithography masters using lamination of ADEX dry film as an alternative to the now classic SU-8 resist masters formed by spin coating. Advantages of using ADEX dry film include the easily-achievable uniform thickness without edge bead; simplicity of the process with significant time savings due to non-sticky nature of the film; and fewer health concerns due to less toxic developing solution and antimony-free composition. As we demonstrate, the process can be performed in a low-cost improvised fabrication room in ambient light, in place of a conventional yellow-light cleanroom environment. We believe this approach holds the promise of delivering state-of-the-art microfluidic techniques to the broad field of biomedical and pharmaceutical research.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rapid Prototyping of Soft Lithography Masters for Microfluidic Devices Using Dry Film Photoresist in a Non-Cleanroom Setting

et al. 2019

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“…We fabricated the microactuators from copper-(Cu)-cladded LCP using a custom maskless photolithography setup previously described 72 . We used a computer connected to a conventional home theater projector with a digital micromirror device (HD142X, Optoma, Fremont, CA, USA) to project and expose a desired pattern 72–75 . The projector was vertically fixed on a stereo-microscope (SM-4B, Amscope, Irvine, CA, USA) using a custom machined bracket.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Towards smart self-clearing glaucoma drainage device

et al. 2018

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For patients who are unresponsive to pharmacological treatments of glaucoma, an implantable glaucoma drainage devices (GDD) are often used to manage the intraocular pressure. However, the microscale channel that removes excess aqueous humor from the anterior chamber often gets obstructed due to biofouling, which necessitates additional surgical intervention. Here we demonstrate the proof-of-concept for smart self-clearing GDD by integrating magnetic microactuators inside the drainage tube of GDD. The magnetic microactuators can be controlled using externally applied magnetic fields to mechanically clear biofouling-based obstruction, thereby eliminating the need for surgical intervention. In this work, our prototype magnetic microactuators were fabricated using low-cost maskless photolithography to expedite design iteration. The fabricated devices were evaluated for their static and dynamic mechanical responses. Using transient numerical analysis, the fluid–structure interaction of our microactuator inside a microtube was characterized to better understand the amount of shear force generated by the device motion. Finally, the anti-biofouling performance of our device was evaluated using fluorescein isothiocyanate labeled bovine serum albumin. The microactuators were effective in removing proteinaceous film deposited on device surface as well as on the inner surface of the microchannel, which supports our hypothesis that a smart self-clearing GDD may be possible by integrating microfabricated magnetic actuators in chronically implanted microtubes.

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“…In a study done by Li et al , a portable light emitting diode (LED) as an alternative to high-voltage mercury lamps was suggested to generate UV light for photoetching. 33 Their LED was able to emit a ∼365 nm monochromatic light which directly falls in the maximal UV absorption rang of SU-8 (350–400 nm) without any need for further filtering. Unlike the commercial lithographic machines, their approach does not require high-level clean rooms and high-voltage mercury lamps with safety issues.…”

Section: Fabricationmentioning

confidence: 99%