title: Fabrication of enclosed SU-8 tips for electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry.
abstract: We describe a novel electrospray tip design for MS which is fabricated completely out of SU-8 photoepoxy. A three-layer SU-8 fabrication process provides fully enclosed channels and tips. The tip shape and alignment of all SU-8 layers is done lithographically and is therefore very accurate. Fabrication process enables easy integration of additional fluidic functions on the same chip. Separation channels can be made with exactly the same process. Fluidic inlets are made in SU-8 during the fabrication process and no drilling or other postprocessing is needed. Channels have been fabricated and tested in the size range of 10 microm x 10 microm-50 microm x 200 microm. Mass spectrometric performance of the tips has been demonstrated with both pressure-driven flow and EOF. SU-8 microtips have been shown to produce stable electrospray with EOF in a timescale of tens of minutes. With pressure driven flow stable spray is maintained for hours. Taylor cone was shown to be small in volume and well defined even with the largest channel cross section. The spray was also shown to be well directed with our tip design.
authors.affiliation: Microelectronics Centre, Helsinki University of Technology, Helsinki, Finland.
authors.forename: Santeri
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tuomikoski
authors.forename: Tiina
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sikanen
authors.forename: Raimo A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Ketola
authors.forename: Risto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kostiainen
authors.forename: Tapio
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kotiaho
authors.forename: Sami
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Franssila
mesh_terms: D004853:Epoxy Resins / Q000737:chemistry; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D021241:Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization / Q000295:instrumentation*
chemical_list: D004853:Epoxy Resins