Re-usable multi-inlet PDMS fluidic connector

Saarela, Ville; Franssila, Sami; Tuomikoski, Santeri; Marttila, S.; Östman, Pekka; Sikanen, Tiina; Kotiaho, Tapio; Kostiainen, Risto

doi:10.1016/j.snb.2005.06.009

Cited by 55 publications

(65 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…Table 1 is a comparison with recently published results. In Saarela et al 22 the PDMS layer is glued to the glass chip.…”

Section: Representative Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The complexity comes from the very limited space to connect tubes to access holes in this work. The smallest diameter of the currently commercially available connectors is in the range of 6 mm; however, the distance between the two access holes is 3 mm [22][23][24] . Therefore, we have proposed a tubing technique based on polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) as shown in Figure 4.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

High Throughput Microfluidic Rapid and Low Cost Prototyping Packaging Methods

Miled

2013

JoVE

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In this work, 3 different packaging and assembly techniques are presented. They can be classified into two categories: one-time use and reusable packaging techniques.The one-time use packaging technique employs UV-based and temperature curing epoxies to connect microtubes to access holes, wire-bonding for integrated circuit connections, and silver epoxy for electrical connections. This method is based on a robust assembly technique that can support relatively high pressure close to 1 psi and does not need any support to strengthen the microfluidic architecture.Reusable packaging techniques consist of PDMS-based microtube interconnectors and anisotropic adhesive films for electrical connections. These devices are more sensitive and fragile. Consequently, Plexiglas support is added to the microfluidic structure to improve the electrical contact when anisotropic adhesive films are used, and also to strengthen the microfluidic architecture. In addition, a micromanipulator is needed to maintain tubes while using a thin PDMS layer to connect them to the access holes. Different PDMS layer thicknesses, ranging from 0.45-3 mm, are tested to compare the best adherence versus injection rates. Applied injection rates are varied from 50-300 μl/hr for 0.45-3 mm PDMS layers, respectively. These techniques are mainly applicable for low-pressure applications. However, they can be extended for high-pressure ones through plasma-oxygen process to permanently seal the PDMS to glass substrates. The main advantage of this technique, besides the fact that it is reusable, consists of keeping the device observable when the microchannel length is very short (in the range of 3 mm or lower). Video LinkThe video component of this article can be found at

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“…Table 1 is a comparison with recently published results. In Saarela et al 22 the PDMS layer is glued to the glass chip.…”

Section: Representative Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

High Throughput Microfluidic Rapid and Low Cost Prototyping Packaging Methods

Miled

2013

JoVE

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“…In one implementation (Figure 4), an anisotropically etched silicon chip was itself used as a master mould for creating a matching PDMS piece. 131 Dummy capillaries were inserted into the PDMS before curing. Both the connector and the capillaries can be detached and reinserted as long as the PDMS remains clean enough.…”

Section: World-to-chip Connectionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A practical guide for the fabrication of microfluidic devices using glass and silicon

Iliescu¹,

Taylor²,

Avram³

et al. 2012

Biomicrofluidics

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207

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This paper describes the main protocols that are used for fabricating microfluidic devices from glass and silicon. Methods for micropatterning glass and silicon are surveyed, and their limitations are discussed. Bonding methods that can be used for joining these materials are summarized and key process parameters are indicated. The paper also outlines techniques for forming electrical connections between microfluidic devices and external circuits. A framework is proposed for the synthesis of a complete glass/silicon device fabrication flow. I. WHY USE SILICON AND GLASS IN MICRO-AND NANO-FLUIDIC APPLICATIONS?Micro-and nano-fluidic technology continues to be embraced by biologists, 1-3 chemists, 4 and engineers throughout academia and industry. As its applications have expanded, there has been an explosion in the range of materials and processes used to fabricate these devices. The earliest microfluidic devices (e.g., gas 5 and liquid 6 chromatography devices) were made from silicon and glass and borrowed processes directly from semiconductor and microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) manufacturing. 7 Now, however, many researchers have moved away from silicon and glass, and instead use cast elastomers such as polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)-which is ideal for swift prototyping-or thermoplastic polymers, which can be hot-embossed or injection-molded and are well suited to inexpensive manufacturing. Yet, there remain many applications where glass and silicon offer advantages over polymeric materials. In this paper, we highlight these advantages and offer a framework for selecting fabrication processes when using silicon and glass. A. The dominance of soft lithographyOver the last decade, PDMS has become virtually the default material for forming microfluidic devices, 8 because of the sheer ease with which it can be cast on to a micro-scale mould and then strongly bonded to glass. 9 The elastomeric nature of the material has been exploited to integrate fluidic valves and pumps on-chip and has simplified the production of multi-layer devices because the soft layers readily conform to each other. 10,11 Yet, the low stiffness (usually <1 MPa) of PDMS relative to amorphous thermoplastics, silicon, and glass has its own a) Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed. Electronic addresses: ciliescu@ibn.a-star.edu.sg and hkt@ntu.edu.sg. 6, 016505 (2012) drawbacks. High aspect-ratio channels are notoriously difficult to fabricate in PDMS because of their propensity to collapse. 12 Moreover, difficulties in automating the handling of such a soft material have hampered efforts to scale up PDMS device manufacturing. Meanwhile, PDMS's high oxygen and water permeabilities have proved both a blessing and a curse in different applications.The hydrophobic nature of PDMS can be an important consideration for some biological applications. In drug screening applications, for example, hydrophobic drugs as well as metabolites (urea or albumin) can be absorbed into the device's material due to hydrophobic--hydrophobic interaction...

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“…Silicon mould [68] as shown in Figure 2-49. The Silicon mould was placed in a Petri dish and dummy capillaries were placed to form channels in the coupler.…”

Section: Saarela Et Al Manufactured a Coupler By Casting Pdms Ontmentioning

confidence: 99%