A microfluidic chip refers to an apparatus used in microfluidics applications in which micro-channels have been molded or patterned. The channels forming the chip are connected together to allow fluids to pass through different channels, going from one place to another. This network is connected to the outside environment through inlet and outlet ports.
The liquids (or gases) are injected, managed, and/or removed from the chip passively or actively (pressure / flow controller, syringe pumps, or peristaltic pumps). The channels may have different inner diameters, typically ranging from 5 to 500 µm, but today structures can be fabricated with sub-micrometer precision.
Procedure
- Use microelectromechanical processing technology similar to semiconductors to build microfluidic systems on chips.
- Transfer the experiment and analysis process to the chip structure composed of interconnected pathways and liquid phase chambers.
- After loading biological samples and reaction solutions, micromechanical pumps, electro-hydraulic pumps, and electroosmotic flow are used to drive the flow of the buffer in the chip to form a micro-flow path and perform one or multiple reactions on the chip in succession. The operator generates a low-power electromagnetic field through radio signals.
Types
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Chip-in-a-lab
The microfluidic chip is usually connected to a syringe pump using tubes. Fluid is driven into the chip and a physical, chemical, or biological experiment is set. It could be used to separate some particles from other particles, e.g. cancer cells from regular cells. -
Lab on a chip
A true lab on a chip, is when the whole action happens in or around the microfluidic chip. Such a system should drive the flow through capillary action, or inline pumps. Then control and process the flow, and give results. -
Integrated microfluidic chip
This category is a middle ground between Chip-in-a-lab and Lab on a Chip. The microfluidic chip is usually integrated in an injection molded cartridge, cassette, or kit. The cartridge is then inserted into an analyzer or reader where most of the actuation, sensing and processing takes place.
Features
- The effective structure, which houses a fluid, is in micron-scale at least for one dimension
- Integrate different functional units for reaction, separation, and detection in a channel network
- Work with smaller reagent volumes, shorter reaction times, and the possibility of parallel operation
Applications
- Microfluidic detection and analysis chip: common detection areas include blood glucose, cardiovascular, coagulation / thrombolysis, infectious agents, blood gas electrolytes, pregnancy, tumor markers, kidney markers, drugs (abuse), alcohol and other subdivisions
- Microfluidic droplet chip: the synthesis and screening of base material
- Microfluidic cell / organs chips: manipulate mammalian cells and their microenvironment
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STEMart provides you with a variety of microfluidic chip technology equipment or consumables to meet your various R&D and application needs. If you have any questions or requirements for biochip technology, please feel free to contact us.