Switchable surfaces are highly useful materials with surface properties that change in response to external stimuli. These surfaces can be employed in both research and industrial applications, where the ability to actively control surface properties can be used to develop smart materials and intelligent surfaces. Herein, we review a range of surfaces in which hydrophobicity can be controlled. We present the principal ideas of surface switching, discuss recent developments, explore experimental issues and examine factors that influence surface switching, including the nature of the stimuli, the underlying material, the morphology of the surface and the surrounding environment. We have categorised switchable surfaces according to the stimuli that trigger changes in surface hydrophobicity. These are electrically, electrochemically, thermally, mechanically, photo- and environmentally inducible surfaces. In addition, we review the use of chemical reactions to modify the properties of switchable surfaces and produce changes in the molecular structure and nanoscale features of the surface.
The integration of microfluidics and microphotonics brings the ability to tune and reconfigure ultracompact optical devices. This flexibility is essentially provided by three characteristics of fluids that are scalable at the micron-scale: fluid mobility, large ranges of index modulation, and abrupt interfaces that can be easily reshaped. Several examples of optofluidic devices are presented here to illustrate the achievement of flexible devices on (semi) planar and compact platforms. First, we report an integrated geometry for a compact and tunable interferometer that exploits a sharp and mobile air/water interface. We then describe a class of optically controlled devices that rely on the actuation of optically trapped micron-sized objects within a fluid environment. The last architecture results from the infiltration of photonic crystal devices with fluids. This produces tunable and reconfigurable photonic devices, like optical switches. Higher degrees of functionality could be achieved with sophisticated optofluidic platforms that associate complex microfluidic delivery and mixing schemes with microphotonic devices. Moreover, optofluidics offers new opportunities for realizing highly responsive and compact sensors.
We present a method to bond unstructured and structured SU-8 films down to sub-micron thicknesses onto microchannels fabricated in KMPR using a flexible polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) stamp. By exploiting differently casted PDMS stamps, 3D microfluidic channel networks, air-suspended photonic devices and optofluidic structures have been fabricated. First, microchannels of KMPR are patterned by photolithography and an SU-8 film is spin coated onto a prepared PDMS stamp. The stamp is then placed on top of the KMPR microchannels and the SU-8 layer is cross-linked by applying sufficient heat and pressure. After peeling off the PDMS stamp, the SU-8 layer remains bonded on the KMPR. In our experiments, we demonstrate the bonding of approximately 0.5 μm thick structured SU-8 films onto KMPR microchannels of about 500 μm width and 25 μm height. Bond strength tests demonstrated that such thin layers can withstand pressures up to 1100 hPa. The laminated SU-8 layers can enable various functionalities, e.g. sealing of microfluidic channels, realization of air-suspended photonic structures or optofluidic devices. Most importantly, the combination of fluid handling in the microchannels and air-suspended photonic structures realized in the laminated SU-8 layer enables research towards a large range of applications, such as optofluidics, biosensors, chemical and biomedical analysis, environmental investigations, and renewable energy.
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