Microfluidic：Microfluidics

Interdisciplinary science

NIST researchers have combined a glass slide, plastic sheets and double-sided tape to create an inexpensive and simple-to-build microfluidic device for exposing an array of cells to different concentrations of a chemical.

Microfluidics refers to a system that manipulates a small amount of fluids (10−9 to 10−18 liters) using small channels with sizes ten to hundreds micrometres. It is a multidisciplinary field that involves molecular analysis, molecular biology, and microelectronics.[1] It has practical applications in the design of systems that process low volumes of fluids to achieve multiplexing, automation, and high-throughput screening. Microfluidics emerged in the beginning of the 1980s and is used in the development of inkjet printheads, DNA chips, lab-on-a-chip technology, micro-propulsion, and micro-thermal technologies.

Typically, micro means one of the following features:

Small volumes (μL, nL, pL, fL) Small size Low energy consu...