Feature characterization of microfabricated microfluidic chips by PDMS replication and CCD imaging.
This paper presents a new approach for the metrological characterization of microfabricated features on microfluidic chips, based on a combination of poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) replication and charge-coupled device (CCD) imaging. A PDMS replicate was cast from the original chip sample, and a 2-mm thick sample slice was cut from the replica at the cross-section to be studied. The digital image of the revealed structural profile was captured by a CCD camera under a microscope, and the image was processed using specially-developed algorithms for CCD image calibration and edge detection. Depth and width measurements obtained using the method agreed well with those gained using a stylus profiler and universal measuring microscope, with a deviation of below 0.9 mum, while profile distortions of deeper structures using stylus profilers were avoided. The method is reliable, non-destructive, and cheap and simple to implement in any analytical laboratory.
Dai
Jing
J
Research Center for Analytical Sciences, Northeastern University, Shenyang, 110004, P. R. China.
Guan
Yan-Xia
YX
Wang
Shi-Li
SL
Wu
Zhi-Yong
ZY
Fang
Zhao-Lun
ZL