CLL770

Introduction to Microfluidics and

applications
What is Microfluidics?

Microfluidics is the field studying the science and engineering of any system, sub‐system or
device that incorporates fluids being manipulated in micrometer length scale in at least one
dimension.
L~4cm

H~200 micron W~5mm

Channel

❑ Study of fluid flows and design of components such as conduits, valves, pumps, mixers,
interconnects on micrometer (micron, μm) length scales.
❑ One dimension between 1μm and 999μm.
Why Microfluidics?

❑ Small Volume → Reduced sample consumption/cost

❑ Repeating units → Better control → Less waste
❑ Faster devices → Kinetics
❑ Parallel measurements → Faster assays
❑ Batch fabrication → High quality

Physics of microfluidics:
First understand the physics of fluids on this scale and how this affects their behaviour.
Firstly, the ratio of inertial forces to viscous forces in a fluidic system is described by the
dimensionless Reynolds number (Re)

❑ laminar flow is highly predictable meaning

𝝆𝒗𝑳 ❑ Mathematical modelling of these systems is less
𝑹𝒆 = Laminar
𝝁 intensive
❑ Only diffusive mixing leads to highly predictable
kinetics.
Why Microfluidics?

Physics of microfluidics:
In addition to the Reynolds number, the Péclet Number also gives information on the mass
transport of a fluid.
𝒗𝑳
𝑷𝒆 = Ratio advective to diffusive transport
𝑫

❑ Diffusion dominated transport leads to highly predictable kinetics.

Reaction times in microfluidic systems are much quicker than conventional devices. This
is due to the smaller dimensions of the systems leading to a shorter diffusion time for any
given molecule. An approximation for diffusion time is shown in

𝒙𝟐 ❑ The time taken for molecules to diffuse across

𝒕≈ 𝒕≈ 𝒙𝟐 said system are reduced, thus leading to faster
𝑫
reaction times in microfluidic devices.
Scaling?

Smaller Length Scales →Different Physics

❑ Things start behaving differently as we gradually shrink their sizes.
❑ Forces: Body (3D), Surface (2D) and line (1D)
❑ Qualitative
▪ 3D → Volume → L3 (Gravity, inertial, body, buoyancy etc.)
▪ 2D → Surface → L2 (Drag, charge, friction etc.)
▪ 1D → Line → L (Surface tension, capillary force etc.)
❑ Small scale
→ Electrostatic/Van der Waals force over gravity/inertia
→ Surface tension/capillary over gravity

Pumping by Surface Tension Laplace equation

𝟏 𝟏
∆𝑷 = 𝑷𝒊 − 𝑷𝒐 = 𝜸 +
𝑹𝒊 𝑹𝒐

𝑹𝒊 ≪ 𝑹𝒐 → 𝑷𝒊 ≫ 𝑷𝒐

Young and Beebe, Chem. Soc. Rev., 2010, 39, 1036–1048

Birth of the field

❑ Electronic manufacturing industry → Photo lithography

❑ Inkjet printing.
Timelines
Is microfluidics interdisciplinary?

❑ Micro fabrication ❑ Mixing

❑ Chemistry ❑ Reactive system analysis
❑ Biology ❑ Bio-physical processes
❑ Mechanics ❑ Biomedical diagnostics
❑ Control ❑ Drug delivery
❑ Thermal/fluidic transport ❑ Artificial organs
❑ Modeling Numerical/simulation ❑ Thermal management
❑ System integration and packaging ❑ Printing
❑ Experimentation and validation ❑ Electronics
❑ Lab on a chip ❑ High through put drug screening
❑ Optics ❑ Biological flows
❑ Micro mechanical devices
Microfluidics applications

Droplet microfluidics
First described in the ‘90s, droplet microfluidics (sometimes referred to as “digital microfluidics” due to its
discretized nature) involves the encapsulation of a reaction in the discrete compartments of an emulsion

Sorting of enzyme producing cells

A single droplet fluorescence Electric field is

was detected following activated between the
excitation by the laser (the electrodes, pulling the
white dot) droplet

Neil Convery, Nikolaj Gadegaard, Micro and Nano Engineering 2 (2019) 76–91
S.L. Sjostrom, Y. Bai, M. Huang, et al., High-throughput screening for industrial enzyme production hosts by droplet microfluidics, Lab Chip 14 (4) (2014) 806–813
Microfluidics applications
Paper microfluidics : Capillary driven flow

Paper analytical device “portable bioassays”

A.W. Martinez, S.T. Phillips, M.J. Butte, G.M. Whitesides, Patterned paper as a platform for inexpensive, low-volume, portable bioassays, Angew Chemie- Int Ed.46 (8) (2007) 1318–1320
Lab on a chip /Organ on chip
Leonardo da Vinci (1490) showing 3D organs

Mimic the complex

human physiology on a
single chip
Microfluidics applications

Lab on a chip /Organ on chip