Microfluidics: Innovations in Materials and Their Fabrication and Functionalization

Abstract

3D printed PDMS (a) bridges at different exposure times, (b) fluidic device with a cross section of 500×500 μm 2 , and (c) blue and yellow dye flowing through the channels of the device in (b). 157 Reproduced from Desktop-Stereolithography 3D-Printing of a Poly(dimethylsiloxane)-Based Material with Sylgard-184 Properties, Bhattacharjee, N.;

Fabrication and Applications of Microfluidic Devices: A Review

“…Various kinds of materials attempt to match these properties and can be used for the manufacturing of microfluidic devices [ 10 , 25 ]. Typical substrates include glass, silicon, metals, polymers, and ceramics, but the diversity and quality of materials are continuously increasing [ 6 , 11 , 17 , 24 , 25 ]. Each material has both advantages and disadvantages, depending on its destination use [ 6 ].…”

“…Silicon is among the first choices when it comes to microfluidic systems fabrication due to its ready availability, chemical compatibility, and thermostability [ 25 , 28 ]. The ease of fabrication, design flexibility, semiconducting properties, and the possibility of surface modifications provided enough reasons for silicon to be the dominant material for microfluidic platforms for decades [ 17 ]. However, several disadvantages must be considered when including this material in practical applications.…”

“…If in situ imaging is required, at least a portion of the device must be non-silicon [ 29 ]. Moreover, being quite fragile and having a high elastic modulus, incorporating active components, i.e., valves and pumps, in the silicon platform is complicated [ 17 , 28 ]. The price is also not in favor of silicon, as it is a relatively expensive material [ 10 , 25 , 28 ].…”

“…Depending on their application and functional particularities, microfluidic devices can also be found in the literature as microreactors [ 3 , 6 , 11 ], lab-on-a-chip [ 12 , 13 , 14 ], or organ-on-a-chip [ 4 , 15 , 16 ]. Providing their destination use, microfluidic chips can be manufactured from a broad range of materials, employing diverse fabrication methods [ 17 , 18 ]. As many manufacturing techniques have already been presented in the literature and adopted in practice [ 10 , 19 , 20 ], the potential for advances in the field of microfluidics increases abruptly, bringing new perspectives to both the academic and industrial sectors [ 18 ].…”

Numerical Study of Multivortex Regulation in Curved Microchannels with Ultra-Low-Aspect-Ratio

“…However, such unique channel designs often face the challenge of high microchannel production and cost increase because of the standard soft lithography and stereolithography technology [ 18 ]. Currently, compared with other approaches to producing microfluidic devices (e.g., micromachining, micromilling, hot embossing, and injection molding), the standard soft lithography and stereolithography technology is the most promising method for the routine creation of microfluidic structures [ 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 ]. Therefore, a low-aspect-ratio (AR) channel should be developed instead of a high-AR channel.…”