Fabrication and Characterization of a Flexible Transparent Nozzle/Diffuser Micropump

Micropumps are one of the most widely used components in lab-on-a-chip devices and other biomedical applications as they can manipulate fluid flow in a very small footprint. In this study, a flexible nozzle-diffuser planar micropump was fabricated using polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS). The pump was fabricated using a two layer structure: bottom layer with molded channels and chamber encapsulated by a planar top layer. The use of PDMS as the structural material for both layers imparts flexibility and transparency to the complete pump assembly. The micropump was characterized by counting the number of compression cycles required for a known volume of fluid, here water, to flow from the inlet to the outlet. A similar characterization was performed while bending the pump at bending radii of 71 cm and 45 cm. The pump produced a flow rate per compression cycle of 5.53 μ1 on flat surface and that of 4μ1,3.6μ1 when placed on surfaces of bending radii of 71cm and 45 cm respectively. The transparency of the pump and biocompatability of PDMS make it an excellent material for biomedical and colorimetric applications.