title: Rapid switching of chemical signals in microfluidic devices.
abstract: We present an analysis of concentration switching times in microfluidic devices. The limits of rapid switching are analyzed based on the theory of dispersion by Taylor and Aris and compared to both experiments and numerical simulations. We focus on switching times obtained by photo-activation of caged compounds in a micro-flow (flow photolysis). The performance of flow photolysis is compared to other switching techniques. A flow chart is provided to facilitate the application of our theoretical analysis to microfluidic switching devices.
authors.affiliation: Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization, Am Fassberg 11, 37077 Göttingen, Germany.
authors.forename: Albert J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Bae
authors.forename: Carsten
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Beta
authors.forename: Eberhard
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Bodenschatz