Physics and Astronomy Department, University of Padova, Via Marzolo 8, 35131, Padova, Italy.
Institute of Applied Physics, University of Münster, Corrensstrasse 2/4, 48149, Münster, Germany.
Sci Rep. 2021 Sep 9;11(1):17987. doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-97392-3.
Droplets microfluidics is broadening the range of Lab on a Chip solutions that, however, still suffer from the lack of an adequate level of integration of optical detection and sensors. In fact, droplets are currently monitored by imaging techniques, mostly limited by a time-consuming data post-processing and big data storage. This work aims to overcome this weakness, presenting a fully integrated opto-microfluidic platform able to detect, label and characterize droplets without the need for imaging techniques. It consists of optical waveguides arranged in a Mach Zehnder's configuration and a microfluidic circuit both coupled in the same substrate. As a proof of concept, the work demonstrates the performances of this opto-microfluidic platform in performing a complete and simultaneous sequence labelling and identification of each single droplet, in terms of its optical properties, as well as velocity and lengths. Since the sensor is realized in lithium niobate crystals, which is also highly resistant to chemical attack and biocompatible, the future addition of multifunctional stages into the same substrate can be easily envisioned, extending the range of applicability of the final device.
液滴微流控技术拓宽了片上实验室解决方案的范围，但仍然存在光学检测和传感器集成程度不足的问题。实际上，目前主要通过成像技术来监测液滴，这受到数据后处理耗时和大数据存储的限制。本工作旨在克服这一弱点，提出了一种完全集成的光电微流控平台，能够在无需成像技术的情况下检测、标记和表征液滴。它由马赫-曾德尔配置的光波导和微流控回路组成，都耦合在同一个衬底上。作为概念验证，本工作展示了该光电微流控平台在执行完整且同时的序列标记和识别每个单个液滴方面的性能，包括其光学特性以及速度和长度。由于传感器是在铌酸锂晶体中实现的，该晶体还具有耐化学侵蚀和生物相容性，因此可以轻松设想在同一衬底上添加多功能级，从而扩展最终设备的应用范围。
