considerable promise. Such a representation is certainly desirable from the standpoints of simplicity and calculational accuracy. Moreover, the generalization of the methods of Sec. II to other d-band metals is quite straightforward.The major qualitative difference we foresee is that the core states will be affected by changes in the d states in cases where the latter are partially or fully occupied.
ACKNOW LEDGMENTWe use the atomic units A=2m =2e =1 throughout. In these units energies are in rydbergs and lengths are in Bohr radii.
A novel, modular, microfluidic interconnect was developed using parallel superhydrophobic interfaces to facilitate the transport of fluids between component chips in modular microfluidic systems. A static analytical model, derived from the Laplace equation [1], approximates the maximum steady-state pressure of the liquid at the liquid bridge which forms across the gap between the chips. Preliminary experiments using parallel superhydrophobic surfaces on PMMA validated the concept. Additional experiments controlled the gap distance, measured contact angles of the superhydrophobic surfaces, gradually increased the pressure of the novel, gasketless, interconnect until rupture to find the maximum pressure across the liquid bridge and verify the model. The measured pressures were on the same order of magnitude (1–10 kPa) as estimated using the model for gap distances of 25 μm and 100 μm.
Chip-to-chip and world-to-chip fluidic interconnections are paramount to enable the passage of liquids between component chips and to/from microfluidic systems. Unfortunately, most interconnect designs add additional physical constraints to chips with each additional interconnect leading to over-constrained microfluidic systems. The competing constraints provided by multiple interconnects induce strain in the chips, creating indeterminate dead volumes and misalignment between chips that comprise the microfluidic system. A novel, gasketless superhydrophobic fluidic interconnect (GSFI) that uses capillary forces to form a liquid bridge suspended between concentric through-holes and acting as a fluid passage was investigated. The GSFI decouples the alignment between component chips from the interconnect function and the attachment of the meniscus of the liquid bridge to the edges of the holes produces negligible dead volume. This passive seal was created by patterning parallel superhydrophobic surfaces (water contact angle ≥ 150°) around concentric microfluidic ports separated by a gap. The relative position of the two polymer chips was determined by passive kinematic constraints, three spherical ball bearings seated in v-grooves. A leakage pressure model derived from the Young–Laplace equation was used to estimate the leakage pressure at failure for the liquid bridge. Injection-molded, Cyclic Olefin Copolymer (COC) chip assemblies with assembly gaps from 3 to 240 µm were used to experimentally validate the model. The maximum leakage pressure measured for the GSFI was 21.4 kPa (3.1 psig), which corresponded to a measured mean assembly gap of 3 µm, and decreased to 0.5 kPa (0.073 psig) at a mean assembly gap of 240 µm. The effect of radial misalignment on the efficacy of the gasketless seals was tested and no significant effect was observed. This may be a function of how the liquid bridges are formed during the priming of the chip, but additional research is required to test that hypothesis.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.