Nanoscale Interdisciplinary Research Teams (NIRT): NanoTurf: Nano-engineered Low Flow Friction Surfaces

这个纳米级跨学科研究小组（NIRT）项目将通过纳米工程新型通道表面和控制其表面特性来解决微流体中大压降的常见问题。 预计其后果将是巨大而深远的。该研究项目是开发一种纳米工程表面，以大幅减少粘性阻力。 尽管微流体技术的爆炸性增长，如生物芯片和芯片实验室等备受瞩目的应用所代表的，但与微型化相关的这个基本问题仍然没有解决：随着设备尺寸的减小，相对压降和功耗的不成比例的增加。由于在表面处的速度的严重延迟，液体通过长的纳米/微米尺度通道的输送遇到高损失才是实际的。 这些表面的制造将通过将MEMS和纳米技术的丰富武库与表面和生物材料科学的广泛知识相结合来开发，基于四位主要研究人员的专业知识。 在新表面的开发和表征之后，将开发一种电可重新配置的生物反应器芯片作为顶点设备，这进一步促进了团队成员之间的协同整合以及公众意识。在这项研究中，传统上不相交的领域-机械工程和化学-从学生开始融合，他们将参加两所学校之间开发和交叉提供的一套正式课程，用于纳米科学和工程。 学生们继续从每月的团队会议和每周的研究任务会议中发展他们的跨学科思维。

This Nanoscale Interdisciplinary Research Teams (NIRT) project will address the common problem of large pressure drops in microfluidics by nano-engineering novel channel surfaces and controlling their surface properties. The consequences are expected to be both dramatic and far-reaching. The research project is to develop a nano-engineered surface to drastically reduce viscous drag. Despite the explosive growth in microfluidics, as represented by such high-profile applications as biochips and lab-on-a-chip, this fundamental problem associated with miniaturization remains unsolved: the disproportional increase in the relative pressure drop and the power consumption as devices are reduced in size. Due to the severe retardation of velocity at the surface, transport of liquids through long, nano/microscale channels encounter to high losses to be practical. Fabrication of these surfaces will be developed by integrating the rich arsenal of MEMS and Nano-technologies with the extensive knowledge of surface and biomaterial sciences, based upon the specialized expertise of the four principal investigators. Following development and characterization of the novel surfaces, an electrically re-configurable bioreactor chip will be developed as a capstone device, which further promotes synergistic integration among the team members as well as public awareness. Fusion of the traditionally disjoint areas in this research - mechanical engineering and chemistry - start from students, who will take a set of formal courses developed and cross-offered between two schools for nanoscale science and engineering. The students continue to develop their interdisciplinary mind from monthly team meetings and weekly task meetings for research.