| Title |
Fabrication and Characteristics of Thermopneumatic-Actuated Polydimethylsiloxane Microvalve |
| Authors |
김진호 ; 조주현 ; 한경희 ; 김영호 ; 김한수 ; 김용상 |
| Keywords |
microvalve ; thermopneumatic-actuation ; PDMS ; ITO heater ; membrane |
| Abstract |
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 |