Droplet Ratchets: Low-cost Parallel Microfuidics

目的：本项目将为纹理棘轮作为低成本、平行处理液滴的微流控平台奠定科技基础。自从他们发明了PI？在实验室中，我们已经证明，纹理棘轮可以完成液滴产生、传输、分裂、合并、混合和分类等基本任务，而无需电场、压力梯度或泵。我们假设我们可以通过观察织体棘轮的动力学来提取丰富的信息，从液滴振荡的相位滞后到沿液滴足迹的固-液-气线的复杂运动。这项研究的影响将从对液体和纳米结构表面之间物理相互作用的更深入理解到对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方面的研究已经进行了几十年，但最近，物理学家、纳米制造工程师和生物医学仪器开发人员的跨学科努力取得了引人注目的新见解。本项目将建立纹理棘轮的综合模型，并在新设计的设备上进行验证。具体来说，我们将探索纹理棘轮作为一种低成本的微流体平台，并开发生物医学领域的应用。更广泛的影响：这项研究揭示了水在微观和纳米尺度上的行为，这远远超出了表面物理和纳米制造的范围，从自清洁表面到海水淡化系统都有应用。PI将参与将先进研究与更广泛的受众联系起来的活动：在华盛顿大学，他帮助建立了一个跨学科的？纳米科学与分子工程本科辅修。在西华大学之外，他还在西华大学的洁净室里主持北西雅图社区学院的课程，参与MESA针对K-12未被充分代表的少数民族的外展项目，并在太平洋科学中心进行实际演示。

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.