title: Compact SAW aerosol generator.
abstract: In this work, we discuss and demonstrate the principle features of surface acoustic wave (SAW) aerosol generation, based on the properties of the fluid supply, the acoustic wave field and the acoustowetting phenomena. Furthermore, we demonstrate a compact SAW-based aerosol generator amenable to mass production fabricated using simple techniques including photolithography, computerized numerical control (CNC) milling and printed circuit board (PCB) manufacturing. Using this device, we present comprehensive experimental results exploring the complexity of the acoustic atomization process and the influence of fluid supply position and geometry, SAW power and fluid flow rate on the device functionality. These factors in turn influence the droplet size distribution, measured here, that is important for applications including liquid chromatography, pulmonary therapies, thin film deposition and olfactory displays.
authors.affiliation: SAWLab Saxony, IFW Dresden, Helmholtzstr. 20, 01069, Dresden, Germany. a.winkler@ifw-dresden.de.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Winkler
authors.affiliation: SAWLab Saxony, IFW Dresden, Helmholtzstr. 20, 01069, Dresden, Germany.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Harazim
authors.affiliation: Singapore University of Technology, Engineering Product Design, 8 Somapah Road, Singapore, 487372, Singapore.
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Collins
authors.affiliation: BelektroniG GmbH, Hauptstraße 38, 01705, Freital, Germany.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Brünig
authors.affiliation: SAWLab Saxony, IFW Dresden, Helmholtzstr. 20, 01069, Dresden, Germany.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Schmidt
authors.affiliation: SAWLab Saxony, IFW Dresden, Helmholtzstr. 20, 01069, Dresden, Germany.
authors.forename: S B
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Menzel
mesh_terms: D000162:Acoustics / Q000295:instrumentation*; D000336:Aerosols; D004867:Equipment Design
chemical_list: D000336:Aerosols
keywords: Aerosol source; Atomization; Fluid supply; Mass scale production; Microchannel; Miniaturization; SAW; Surface acoustic wave