• The Transactions of the Korean Institute of Electrical Engineers C
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• v.53 no.4
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• pp.231-236
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• 2004

A normally open thermopneumaticc-actuated microvalve has been fabricated and their properties are investigated. The advantages of the proposed microvalve are of the low cost fabrication process and the transparent optical property using polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and indium tin oxide (ITO) glass. The fabricated microvalves with in-channel configuration are easily integrated with other microfluidic devices on the same substrate. The fabrication process of thermopneumatic-actuated microvalvesusing PDMS is very simple and its performance is very suitable for a disposable lab-on-a-chip. The PDMS membrane deflection increases and the flow rates of the microchannel with microvalvels decrease as the applied power to the ITO heater increases. The powers at flow-off are dependent on the membrane thickness and the applied inlet pressure but are independent of the channel width of microvalves. The flow rate is well controlled by the switching function of ITO heater and the closing/opening times are around 20 sec and 25 sec, respectively.

• Korea-Australia Rheology Journal
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.207-215
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• 2005

We present a finite difference solution for electrokinetic flow in rectangular microchannels encompassing Navier's fluid slip phenomena. The externally applied body force originated from between the nonlinear Poisson-Boltzmann field around the channel wall and the flow-induced electric field is employed in the equation of motion. The basic principle of net current conservation is applied in the ion transport. The effects of the slip length and the long-range repulsion upon the velocity profile are examined in conjunction with the friction factor. It is evident that the fluid slip counteracts the effect by the electric double layer and induces a larger flow rate. Particle streak imaging by fluorescent microscope and the data processing method developed ourselves are applied to straight channel designed to allow for flow visualization of dilute latex colloids underlying the condition of simple fluid. The reliability of the velocity profile determined by the flow imaging is justified by comparing with the finite difference solution. We recognized the behavior of fluid slip in velocity profiles at the hydrophobic surface of polydimethylsiloxane wall, from which the slip length was evaluated for different conditions.

• The Transactions of the Korean Institute of Electrical Engineers C
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• v.53 no.6
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• pp.342-346
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• 2004

A thermopneumatic-actuated polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) micropump has been fabricated and their properties are characterized. The diffusers are used as a flow-rectifying element instead of passive check valves. The advantages of the proposed microvalve are of the low cost fabrication process and the transparent optical property using PDMS and indium tin oxide (ITO) glass. We presented the PDMS micropump that is easily integrated with the in-channel PDMS microvalves on the same substrate. The flowrate of the micropump increases linearly as the applied pulse voltage to the ITO heater increases. The fabricated ITO heater resistance is 6.54k$\Omega$. The peak of the flow rate is observed at the duty ratio of 10% for the applied pulse voltage of 55V at 6Hz and the maximum flow rate of 78nl/min is measured.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.59 no.1
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• pp.100-105
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• 2021

This paper proposes the polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) blade coating method for fabrication of paper-based analytical device (PAD) that is able to monitor the disease diagnosis and progress without special analytical equipment. The mold that has PAD design is easily modified by using laser cutting technique. And the fabricated mold is used for hydrophobic barrier formation by blade coating. We have optimized the stable formation of PDMS hydrophobic barrier as blade coating condition, which is established by analyzing the structure of the PDMS hydrophobic barrier and change of hydrophilic channel size as thickness of the ink and contact time with the chromatography paper. Based on optimal condition, we demonstrate that PAD as biosensor can apply to detect protein, glucose, and metal ion without special analysis equipment.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.58 no.1
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• pp.122-126
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• 2020

In this study, we produced the micropatterned channel system using polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and micromolding in capillaries (MIMIC) technology and evaluated cellular polarity signals through high-resolved imaging at the single-cell level. In cells treated with platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF), three types of key signals in cell migration; phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3 K), Rac, and Actin, were strongly activated in the front area compared to the rear region, whereas myosin light chain (MLC) showed no notable activity in the front and rear areas. Our results will, therefore, provide important information and methodology for studying the correlation between cell polarity signals and cell migration under the newly defined microenvironment.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2013.08a
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• pp.274.2-274.2
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• 2013

We described a simple and efficient fabrication method for generating microfluidic channels with a circular-cross sectional geometry by exploiting the reflow phenomenon of a thick positive photoresist. Initial rectangular shaped positive photoresist micropatterns on a silicon wafer, which were fabricated by a conventional photolithography process, were converted into a half-circular shape by tuning the temperature to around $105^{\circ}C$. Through optimization of the reflow conditions, we could obtain a perfect circular micropattern of the positive photoresist, and control the diameter in a range from 100 to 400 ${\mu}m$. The resultant convex half-circular photoresist was used as a template for fabricating a concave polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) through a replica molding process, and a circular PDMS microchannel was produced by bonding two half-circular PDMS layers. A variety of channel dimensions and patterns can be easily prepared, including straight, S-curve, X-, Y-, and T-shapes to mimic an in vivo vascular network. To inform an endothelial cell layer, we cultured primary human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) inside circular PDMS microchannels, and demonstrated successful cell adhesion, proliferation, and alignment along the channel.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers B
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• v.33 no.5
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• pp.311-317
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• 2009

Due to extremely small device size and velocity scale, mixing in microchannel take place very slowly by way of molecular diffusion transport. Mixing enhancement becomes a central issue in microfluidics for biomedical and chemical applications. In this work, The optimization results and validation through experiment and fabrication. In this efficient micromixer design, it is essential to evaluate mixing efficiency with good precision. Mixing efficiency for Y-channel micromixer is measured by fluorescence intensity using LIF(Laser Induced Fluorescence) Confocal Microscope. The Y-channel micromixers are fabricated with polydimethylsiloxane(PDMS). Nile Blue A is injected into the micromixer as a fluorescence dye for measuring of fluorescence intensity by He/Ne laser. Throughout the experiments and computer simulation, accurate mixing efficiency evaluation process for a PDMS Y-channel micromixer is established.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Precision Engineering
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.29-33
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• 2010

We have investigated fs-laser ablation as well as optoperforation threshold of PDMS (Polydimethylsiloxane) thin lid cover on ${\mu}$-channel with changing the flow medium from water to hemoglobin. The ablation threshold is found to be independent of both PDMS thin film thickness and flow medium, but the optoperforation threshold is dependent on the films thickness. The observation that the ablation process is well described with simple two-temperature model supposed that the cover lid PDMS of $\mu$-channel be processed with minimized thermal effects by fs-laser with low laser fluence.

• The Journal of Korean Institute of Electromagnetic Engineering and Science
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.123-130
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• 2016

In this paper, a novel flexible microfluidic metamaterial absorber is proposed for remote chemical sensor applications. The proposed metamaterial absorber consists of a periodic of split-ring-cross resonators(SRCRs) and a microfluidic channel. The SRCR patterns are inkjet-printed using silver nanoparticle inks on paper. The microfluidic channels are laser-etched on polydimethylsiloxane(PDMS) material. The proposed absorber can detect change of the effective permittivity at different liquids. Therefore, the absorber can be used for a remote chemical sensor by detecting change of the resonant frequencies. The performance of the proposed absorber is demonstrated with full-wave simulation and measurement results. The experimental results shows that the resonant frequency is 10.49 GHz at the empty channel. When ethanol and DI-water are injected into the channel, the resonant frequencies are 10.04 GHz and 8.9 GHz, respectively.

• The Transactions of the Korean Institute of Electrical Engineers C
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• v.54 no.5
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• pp.227-231
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• 2005

We have developed a microsystem with a capillary electrophoresis (CE) and an electrochemical detector (ECD). The microfabricated CE-ECD systems are adequate for a disposable type and the characteristics are optimized for an application to the electrochemical detection. The system was realized with polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)-glass chip and indium tin oxide electrode. The injection and separation channels (80 um wide$\ast$40 um deep) were produced by moulding a PDMS against a microfabricated master with relatively simple and inexpensive methods. A CE-ECD systems were fabricated on the same substrate with the same fabrication procedure. The surface of PDMS layer and ITO-coated glass layer was treated with UV-Ozone to improve bonding strength and to enhance the effect of electroosmotic flow. For comparing the performance of the ITO electrodes with the gold electrodes, gold electrode microchip was fabricated with the same dimension. The running buffer was prepared by 10 mM 2-(N-morpholino)ethanesulfonic acid (MES) titrated to PH 6.5 using 0.1 N NaOH. We measured olectropherograms for the testing analytes consisted of catechol and dopamine with the different concentrations of 1 mM and 0.1 mM, respectively. The measured current peaks of dopamine and catechol are proportional to their concentrations. For comparing the performance of the ITO electrodes with the gold electrodes, electropherograms was measured for CE-ECD device with gold electrodes under the same conditions. Except for the base current level, the performances including sensitivity, stability, and resolution of CE-ECD microchip with ITO electrode are almost the same compared with gold electrode CE-ECD device. The disposable CE/ECD system showed similar results with the previously reported expensive system in the limit of detection and peak skew. When we are using disposable microchips, it is possible to avoid polishing electrode and reconditioning.