“Wedges, anchors and rails: forming, guiding and trapping droplet microreactors in 2D”

 
by Rémi Dangla
(Laboratoire d’hydrodynamique de l’Ecole Polytechnique, France);
 
 
Wednesday February 16, 2011, at 11:00 – Room BM 5 204
 
Abstract :
In the field of droplet based microfluidics, two main branches have emerged: i) droplet microfluidics which uses networks of microchannels to transport confined droplets, and ii) digital microfluidics which implement 2D actuation of wetting droplets on large surfaces. Our aim is to brigde the gap and to develop droplet microfluidics in two dimensions. After a brief introduction of this concept, we will show how surface energy, which is dominant in confined geometries, can be used to exert forces onto droplets. In particular, we demonstrate original methods to passively produce, guide and trap microdroplets.