ACTUATORS FOR MICROFLUIDICS WITHOUT MOVING PARTS
First Claim
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1. A device comprising:
- (a) a first surface and a second surface separated from one another to form a gap between the first and second surfaces;
(b) a plurality of electrodes mounted on the first and second surfaces and facing the gap;
(c) an insulator separating at least a subset of the electrodes from the gap; and
(d) a drop meter comprising a contact pad, a cutoff electrode, and a control electrode, wherein the contact pad is adjacent to the cutoff electrode, and the cutoff electrode is adjacent to the control electrode.
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Abstract
A series of microactuators for manipulating small quantities of liquids, and methods of using these for manipulating liquids, are disclosed. The microactuators are based on the phenomenon of electrowetting and contain no moving parts. The force acting on the liquid is a potential-dependent gradient of adhesion energy between the liquid and a solid insulating surface.
90 Citations
52 Claims
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1. A device comprising:
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(a) a first surface and a second surface separated from one another to form a gap between the first and second surfaces;
(b) a plurality of electrodes mounted on the first and second surfaces and facing the gap;
(c) an insulator separating at least a subset of the electrodes from the gap; and
(d) a drop meter comprising a contact pad, a cutoff electrode, and a control electrode, wherein the contact pad is adjacent to the cutoff electrode, and the cutoff electrode is adjacent to the control electrode. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27)
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28. A device comprising:
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(a) two surfaces separated to form a gap;
(b) a two-dimensional array and/or linear path of electrodes positioned to project an electric field across the gap;
(c) one or more electrodes exposed to the gap and not coated with an insulator material.
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29. A device comprising:
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(a) two surfaces separated to form a gap;
(b) a two-dimensional array and/or linear path of electrodes positioned on one of the surfaces and coated with an insulator material;
(c) one or more electrodes exposed to the gap and not coated with an insulator material.
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30. A device comprising:
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(a) two surfaces separated to form a gap;
(b) an array and/or linear path of electrodes positioned on one of the surfaces and coated with an insulator material;
(c) a corresponding array and/or linear path positioned on the other of the surfaces comprising electrodes not coated with an insulator material.
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31. A method of forming a droplet, the method comprising:
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(a) overlapping a droplet with a charged group of electrodes;
(b) removing a potential from an intermediate electrode of the charged group of electrodes to separate the droplet into separate bodies. - View Dependent Claims (32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39)
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40. A method of dispensing a droplet, the method comprising:
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(a) providing substrate comprising a hydrophilic contact pad adjacent to a cutoff electrode adjacent to a control electrode;
(b) providing a liquid on the control pad;
(c) activating the control pad, the cutoff electrode and the control electrode to spread the liquid over the control pad, the cutoff electrode and the control electrode;
(d) deactivating the cutoff electrode to yield a droplet on the control electrode. - View Dependent Claims (41, 42, 43, 44)
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- 45. A method of forming a droplet, the method comprising separating the droplet into separate bodies using a group of electrodes, at least a portion of which electrodes are coated with a hydrophobic coating.
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48. A method of transporting a droplet, the method comprising:
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(a) providing a surface comprising a first electrode and a second electrode;
(b) providing the first electrode with a wetting potential causing a droplet to be positioned on the first electrode;
(c) removing the wetting potential from the first electrode and applying a wetting potential to the second electrode, causing the droplet to move from the first electrode to the second electrode. - View Dependent Claims (49, 50, 51)
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52. A method of transporting an elongated droplet, the method comprising:
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(a) providing the droplet on a surface having an electrode-mediated wetting potential;
(b) applying a wetting potential to an electrode at one end of the elongated droplet and removing a wetting potential from another end of the elongated droplet, thereby causing the droplet to be transported.
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Specification