Market Assessment for Universal Nanofluidic Cell with Loading Station

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Commercially available Nanofluidic Chip (NFC) systems are basically two Silicon wafer based nanofabricated chips with transparent windows separated by a thin spacer (typically in the order of a few hundreds of nm). In such a NFC system, even a tiny droplet of 0.1 uL suffices for the liquid to run over the top of the spacer. This increases the effective electron beam path in a non-reproducible manner. The main problem with current NFC systems is the inability to accurately and precisely control of the final liquid layer thickness and the positioning of the liquid sample (droplet).Our innovative new universal NFC and loading station system avoid this problem entirely by providing a reservoir area (or overflow catch basin) to capture the excess fluid and drain it away from the spacer thereby leaving the viewing area unaffected.University of Waterloo (UW) NFCs allow for the excess of liquid to spill over into an adjacent reservoir, without reaching the spacer area. In addition, the special shape of the chips enables the liquid droplet to self-position in the viewing area and pre-concentrate at desired level before sealing. Our NFCs are to be loaded in a specially designed loading station for minimal to none window bulging to enable control of the effective electron beam path or liquid layer thickness, and therefore better resolution images of drop-casted specimens over large viewing areas. Moreover, UW NFCs are fabricated to fit in most commonly used sample holders.