NDLI: Screen-printed polymer-based microfluidic and micromechanical devices based on evaporable compounds

Content Provider	IEEE Xplore Digital Library
Author	Serra, N. Maeder, T. Jacq, C. Fournier, Y. Ryser, P.
Copyright Year	2009
Description	Author affiliation: Laboratoire de Production Microtechnique, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Station 17, BM 0.141, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland (Serra, N.; Maeder, T.; Jacq, C.; Fournier, Y.; Ryser, P.)
Abstract	We investigate in this work the fabrication of polymer fluidic and mechanical devices based on evaporable compounds as sacrificial layers using the screen-printing process. The combination of thermosetting polymer resins with evaporable compounds as sacrificial layers allows straightforward fabrication of polymer microfluidic and micromechanical devices. Channel, cavities and spacings are first defined by sacrificial material layers. This is followed by polymer resin deposition and polymerization / solvent removal. Removal of the sacrificial layers is then accomplished by heating at their decomposition / evaporation temperature. This process does not require an ulterior dissolution step, and systems exist where the sacrificial layer molecules escape by diffusion through the polymer at high temperature: we are therefore not limited to open structures. Furthermore, the use of screen-printed thick-film compositions is very advantageous regarding process cost and flexibility. The selected sacrificial layer must be stable at the polymer processing temperature, yet decompose / evaporate cleanly at a temperature low enough to avoid degradation of the polymer. In this work, we used polymers such as ethylcellulose and silicone resins filled with graphite to impart electrical conductivity and improve mechanical stability. The selected sacrificial materials were polyol-based and were formulated to sublime rather than evaporate, in order to preserve the structures. They were formulated as thick-film pastes using a suitable cyclohexanol-based solvent mix.
Starting Page	1
Ending Page	5
File Size	783329
Page Count	5
File Format	PDF
ISBN	9781424447220
Language	English
Publisher	Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. (IEEE)
Publisher Date	2009-06-15
Publisher Place	Italy
Access Restriction	Subscribed
Rights Holder	IMAPS-Italy
Subject Keyword	Solvents Temperature Costs screen-printing inks evaporable compounds Micromechanical devices Fabrication Heating fluidics sacrificial layer Polymers Resins Microfluidics Thermal degradation micromechanics
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article

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