Advances in the Fabrication of Surface Modified Micro-fluidic Devices in Non - Fluorescing UV Cured Materials

摘要

The challenge in manufacturing disposable bio micro-fluidic devices centers on making complex structures with controlled wetting and adhesion characteristics that can be used with fluorescence detection at a very low cost of < $1 a part. We will report on a new low fluorescence UV curable material that can be patterned in the Contact Liquid Photolithographic Polymerization (CLiPP) process developed at U Colorado [1]. A generic micro fluidic device can be thought of as a liquid delivery, reaction, and detection package. The mechanics of fluid delivery require a series of delivery ports, chambers, and valves that form a complex internal structure. The CLiPP process was invented to make these complex structures by using a contact mask to image a UV curable liquid. The material is crosslinked in the exposed region, and the uncrosslinked liquid washed away. Multiple layers with embedded structures can be made by repeat exposures. Closed cells are formed by lamination, or by temporarily filling the structure with wax and them capping with UV material. The process is illustrated below in Figure 1.