Droplet Ratchets: Low-cost Parallel Microfuidics

目的：该项目将为纹理棘轮建立科学和技术基础，作为低成本，并行处理液滴的微流体平台。从他们在私家侦探社的发明开始？我们已经证明，纹理棘轮可以执行液滴生成，运输，分裂，合并，混合和分类的基本任务，所有这些都没有电场，压力梯度或泵。我们假设，我们可以通过观察纹理棘轮的动态，从液滴振荡的相位滞后到沿沿着液滴足迹的固-液-汽线的复杂运动，来提取丰富的信息。这项研究的影响将从更深入地了解液体和纳米结构表面之间的物理相互作用，到新型便携式设备的诊断。智力优势：尽管在润湿现象和微流体学方面进行了数十年的研究，但最近物理学家、纳米纤维工程师和生物医学仪器开发人员的跨学科努力带来了引人注目的新见解。本计画将建立一个全面的纹理棘轮模型，并在新设计的装置上验证。具体来说，我们将探索纹理棘轮作为一个低成本的微流体平台，并开发应用程序的生物医学竞技场。更广泛的影响：这项研究揭示了水在微米和纳米尺度上的行为，其相关性远远超出了表面物理和纳米制造的范围，其应用范围从自清洁表面到海水淡化系统。PI将参与活动，以连接先进的研究，以更广泛的受众：在华盛顿大学，他帮助建立一个跨学科？辅修纳米科学与分子工程。除了华盛顿大学，他还在北西雅图社区学院的洁净室里上课，参加梅萨为K-12少数民族提供的外展项目，并在太平洋科学中心进行实践演示。

Objective: This project will establish the scientific and technological foundations for texture ratchets as a microfluidic platform for low-cost, parallel handling of droplets. Since their invention in the PI?s lab, we have shown that texture ratchets can perform the essential tasks of droplet generation, transport, splitting, merging, mixing and sorting, all without electric fields, pressure gradients or pumps. We hypothesize that we can extract a wealth of information by observing the dynamics of texture ratchets, starting from the phase lag of droplet oscillation to the intricate motion of the solid-liquid-vapor line along the droplet footprint. The impact of this research will span from a deeper understanding of the physical interactions between liquids and nano-structured surfaces to diagnostics on novel portable devices.Intellectual Merits: Despite decades of research in wetting phenomena and microfluidics, recently there have been dramatic new insights from interdisciplinary efforts by physicists, nanofabrication engineers and developers of biomedical instruments. This project will establish a comprehensive model of texture ratchets and validate it on newly designed devices. Specifically, we will explore texture ratchets as a low-cost microfluidic platform and develop applications for the biomedical arena. Broader Impact: This research sheds light on the behavior of water at the micro- and nano-scale that is relevant well beyond surface physics and nanofabrication, with applications from self-cleaning surfaces to desalination systems. The PI will be involved in activities to connect advanced research to a wider audience: Within UW, he helps establishing an interdisciplinary ?Undergraduate Minor in Nanoscience and Molecular Engineering.? Beyond UW, he hosts classes from North Seattle Community College in UW cleanrooms, participates in MESA outreach programs for K-12 underrepresented minorities, and gives hands-on demos at the Pacific Science Center.