A Non-Photolithography Fabrication for a Microfluidic Chip Based on PMMA Polymer

Machines

Xiaowei Han¹  Xiaowei Liu¹  Li Tian¹  He Zhang¹  Zhi-Gang Mao² 

[1] Key Laboratory of Micro-Systems and Micro-Structures Manufacturing, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150000, China; E-Mails:;School of Microelectronics, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China; E-Mail:

关键词: PMMA;    microfluidic chip;    microchannel fabrication;    micromachining;   

DOI  :  10.3390/machines3020107

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

Polymer microchannels can be commonly processed using many non-lithographic methods for reducing the manufacturing cost and steps. In this research, an inexpensive and high-precision thermal engraving technology is developed and achieved to machine polymer microchannels ranging from tens to hundreds of micrometers. This paper presents the design of a thermal engraving device, the processing method and the experimental procedure. Thermal engraving microscribers can fabricate microchannels with a width less than 100 μm. Furthermore, the effects of velocity and temperature on the roughness of polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) microchannels are also discussed. Finally, a smooth microchannel with these parameters optimally coordinated is achieved. Meanwhile, the contact angle (CA) and the electro-osmotic flow (EOF) of microchannels fabricated by this technology are also measured. The experimental results show that this method of fabrication has the advantages of low cost, high efficiency and small polymer microchannel size compared with several non-lithographic methods. This method of fabrication would be attractive for labs lacking extremely clean rooms and expensive photolithography apparatuses.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2015 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.