Issue 6, 2010

A portable device for temperature control along microchannels

Abstract

For many physical, chemical and biological measurements, temperature is a crucial parameter to control. In particular, the recent development of microreactors and chip-based technologies requires integrated thermostatic systems. However, the requirements of disposability and visual inspection of a device under a microscope cannot accommodate equipment such as external heaters. By exploiting a silver-filled epoxy that can be injected and solidified in a microfluidic chip, we demonstrate a simple and inexpensive design of a conductive path, which allows heating by the Joule effect of both sides of a microchannel. In addition to permitting the maintenance of a constant temperature along the channel walls, our method can control the temperature gradient across the channel, thus enabling non-equilibrium studies in a microfluidic geometry.

Graphical abstract: A portable device for temperature control along microchannels

Article information

Article type
Technical Note
Submitted
15 Sep 2009
Accepted
14 Dec 2009
First published
06 Jan 2010

Lab Chip, 2010,10, 795-798

A portable device for temperature control along microchannels

D. Vigolo, R. Rusconi, R. Piazza and H. A. Stone, Lab Chip, 2010, 10, 795 DOI: 10.1039/B919146A

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