Wetting micro- and nanofluidic devices using supercritical water.
We describe a method for wetting micro- and nanofluidic devices with water or any other pure liquid. The process is performed by enclosing the fluidic device in a liquid-filled cell, heating the cell to a temperature above the critical point of the liquid, and subsequent cooling of the cell to room temperature. Because the process liquid is essentially a gas during wetting, arbitrary shapes can be wetted. We demonstrate wetting of micro- and nanostructures in a fused-silica device with only a single inlet. The process is low-cost, fast, safe, and very reliable.
Riehn
Robert
R
Department of Physics, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA. rriehn@princeton.edu
Austin
Robert H
RH
D046210:Microfluidic Analytical Techniques; D036103:Nanotechnology; D013696:Temperature; D014867:Water
D014867:Water