title: Easy monitoring of velocity fields in microfluidic devices using spatiotemporal image correlation spectroscopy.
abstract: Spatiotemporal image correlation spectroscopy (STICS) is a simple and powerful technique, well established as a tool to probe protein dynamics in cells. Recently, its potential as a tool to map velocity fields in lab-on-a-chip systems was discussed. However, the lack of studies on its performance has prevented its use for microfluidics applications. Here, we systematically and quantitatively explore STICS microvelocimetry in microfluidic devices. We exploit a simple experimental setup, based on a standard bright-field inverted microscope (no fluorescence required) and a high-fps camera, and apply STICS to map liquid flow in polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) microchannels. Our data demonstrates optimal 2D velocimetry up to 10 mm/s flow and spatial resolution down to 5 μm.
authors.affiliation: NEST, Scuola Normale Superiore and Istituto di Nanoscienze - CNR, Piazza San Silvestro 12, I-56127 Pisa, Italy. marco.travagliati@sns.it
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Travagliati
authors.forename: Salvatore
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Girardo
authors.forename: Dario
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Pisignano
authors.forename: Fabio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Beltram
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cecchini