Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Wetting micro- and nanofluidic devices using supercritical water.

Robert Riehn1, Robert H Austin

  • 1Department of Physics, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA. rriehn@princeton.edu

Analytical Chemistry
|August 16, 2006
PubMed
Summary

This study introduces a novel, reliable method for wetting micro- and nanofluidic devices using supercritical fluids. The technique ensures complete wetting of complex structures, offering a low-cost and efficient solution for fluidic device fabrication.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Gradient metapopulation microfluidic ecologies shape genetic and biofilm drivers of T4r phage resistance in E. coli.

NPJ biofilms and microbiomes·2026
Same author

Informational Memory Shapes Collective Behavior in Intelligent Swarms.

Physical review letters·2026
Same author

Protocol to model tumor hypoxia in vitro using real-time phosphorescence-based sensing of O<sub>2</sub> gradients generated by metastatic cancer cells.

STAR protocols·2025
Same author

Plasmonic Double-Hole Bull's Eye Nanoantenna for Far-Field Polarization Control.

ACS nanoscience Au·2025
Same author

Probing protein-DNA interactions and compaction in nanochannels.

Current opinion in structural biology·2024
Same author

Microfluidic Ecology Unravels the Genetic and Ecological Drivers of T4r Bacteriophage Resistance in E. coli: Insights into Biofilm-Mediated Evolution.

Research square·2024

Area of Science:

  • Materials Science
  • Chemical Engineering
  • Physics

Background:

  • Micro- and nanofluidic devices are crucial in various scientific fields.
  • Wetting these devices, especially those with complex geometries, presents significant challenges.
  • Existing methods can be complex, costly, or ineffective for certain structures.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To develop a simple, reliable, and cost-effective method for wetting micro- and nanofluidic devices.
  • To demonstrate the efficacy of the technique on fused-silica devices with challenging geometries.
  • To enable efficient liquid filling of arbitrary micro- and nanostructures.

Main Methods:

  • The method involves enclosing the fluidic device in a liquid-filled cell.
  • The cell is heated above the critical point of the liquid, rendering it a supercritical fluid.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Subsequent cooling to room temperature completes the wetting process.

    • Main Results:

    • Successfully demonstrated wetting of micro- and nanostructures in a fused-silica device.
    • The technique is effective even for devices with a single inlet.
    • The process is shown to be low-cost, fast, safe, and highly reliable.

    Conclusions:

    • The described supercritical fluid-based method provides an effective solution for wetting micro- and nanofluidic devices.
    • This technique overcomes limitations of traditional wetting methods for complex geometries.
    • It offers a versatile and practical approach for fabricating and utilizing micro- and nanofluidic systems.