Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
7143518 | Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical | 2016 | 15 Pages |
Abstract
This paper presents an on-chip thermal flow sensor, patterned in Ni on the outside of a polymer microfluidic channel. The sensor is a low power (low T), no-hysteresis device, with excellent resolution (<30 nl minâ1) and built-in calibration, covering a wide range of typical Lab on a Chip flow rates. These features, together with the compatibility of the approach with current printing and roll-to-roll techniques, prove a realistic mass-producible solution for direct monitoring of microfluidic protocols inside Lab-on-a-Chip (LoC) devices. In contrast with commercially available flow sensors, its low price allows its use in disposable devices. Functionality of the microsensor is tested over 20 h in a microfluidic cell culture application, where nutrients flow rate had to be monitored and controlled. The results indicate successful performance of the sensor in this highly sensitive environment. Overall, this on-chip sensor approach offers significant improvements over existing sensor devices, both for the academic and commercial applications.
Keywords
Related Topics
Physical Sciences and Engineering
Chemistry
Analytical Chemistry
Authors
Jaione Etxebarria, Javier Berganzo, Jorge Elizalde, Guillermo Llamazares, Luis José Fernández, Aitor Ezkerra,