title: Nonlinear pressure-flow relationships for passive microfluidic valves.
abstract: An analytical solution is presented for the nonlinear pressure-flow relationship of deformable passive valves, which are formed by bonding a deformable film over etched channels separated by a weir. A fluidic pathway connecting the channels is opened when the upstream pressure creates a tunnel along a predefined narrow strip where the film is not bonded to the weir. When the width of the strip is comparable to the inlet channel width, the predicted closed-form pressure-flow rate relationship is in excellent agreement with experiments, which determine pressures by measuring film deflections for prescribed flow rates. The validated closed-form models involve no fitting parameters, and provide the foundation to design passive diodes with specific nonlinear pressure-flow characteristics.
authors.affiliation: Center for Microsystems for the Life Sciences, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22902, USA.
authors.forename: Erkin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Seker
authors.forename: Daniel C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Leslie
authors.forename: Hossein
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Haj-Hariri
authors.forename: James P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Landers
authors.forename: Marcel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Utz
authors.forename: Matthew R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Begley