Bonabi Ashkan, Tähkä Sari, Ollikainen Elisa, Jokinen Ville, Sikanen Tiina
Drug Research Program, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 56, 00790 Helsinki, Finland.
Department of Chemistry and Materials Science, School of Chemical Engineering, Aalto University, Micronova, Tietotie 3, 02150 Espoo, Finland.
Micromachines (Basel). 2019 Sep 12;10(9):605. doi: 10.3390/mi10090605.
Organically modified ceramic polymers (ORMOCERs) have attracted substantial interest in biomicrofluidic applications owing to their inherent biocompatibility and high optical transparency even in the near-ultraviolet (UV) range. However, the processes for metallization of ORMOCERs as well as for sealing of metallized surfaces have not been fully developed. In this study, we developed metallization processes for a commercial ORMOCER formulation, Ormocomp, covering several commonly used metals, including aluminum, silver, gold, and platinum. The obtained metallizations were systematically characterized with respect to adhesion (with and without adhesion layers), resistivity, and stability during use (in electrochemical assays). In addition to metal adhesion, the possibility for Ormocomp bonding over each metal as well as sufficient step coverage to guarantee conductivity over topographical features (e.g., over microchannel edges) was addressed with a view to the implementation of not only planar, but also three-dimensional on-chip sensing elements. The feasibility of the developed metallization for implementation of microfluidic electrochemical assays was demonstrated by fabricating an electrophoresis separation chip, compatible with a commercial bipotentiostat, and incorporating integrated working, reference, and auxiliary electrodes for amperometric detection of an electrochemically active pharmaceutical, acetaminophen.
有机改性陶瓷聚合物（ORMOCERs）因其固有的生物相容性和即使在近紫外（UV）范围内也具有的高光学透明度，在生物微流体应用中引起了广泛关注。然而，ORMOCERs的金属化工艺以及金属化表面的密封工艺尚未得到充分发展。在本研究中，我们开发了一种用于商业ORMOCER配方Ormocomp的金属化工艺，涵盖了几种常用金属，包括铝、银、金和铂。对获得的金属化层在附着力（有无粘附层）、电阻率以及使用过程中的稳定性（在电化学分析中）方面进行了系统表征。除了金属附着力外，还探讨了Ormocomp在每种金属上的键合可能性以及足够的台阶覆盖率，以确保在地形特征（如微通道边缘）上的导电性，目的是不仅实现平面的，而且实现三维的片上传感元件。通过制造与商用双恒电位仪兼容的电泳分离芯片，并集成工作电极、参比电极和辅助电极用于对电化学活性药物对乙酰氨基酚进行安培检测，证明了所开发的金属化工艺用于实现微流体电化学分析的可行性。
