Microfluidics Applications in the Life Sciences Sector
Mark Olde Riekerink,
Senior Business Development Manager,
Micronit Microtechnologies BV
Microfluidics is the science of manipulating small volumes of liquids. This field is rapidly evolving and can have an enormous impact on the progress in science and healthcare. This usually is executed on microchips made with manufacturing techniques also used in the semiconductor industry, like lithography, etching and thin film deposition. The chips contain small channels, which enable accurate control of liquids and chemical reactions. The use of small volumes allows quicker temperature shifts and faster liquid displacement. Moreover, microfluidics enables the automation and integration of complex operations on-chip, with reduced sample and expensive reagent volumes. With such properties, microfluidics can fit applications in the healthcare sector along with other microtechnologies. The approach starts from a conceptual design to prototyping to a final design and process transfer for volume manufacturing. A flexible approach allows the choice of a variety of materials and hybrid material combinations and customized designs e.g. for successful integration of multiple functions. This approach is of particular interest for developing relative complex designs with multiple micro- and nanostructures and functionalities on board. The collaboration of life sciences and microfluidics companies can help in developing technologies that can also reduce development costs, speed up time-to-market and increase success rates for cost-effective commercialization. During this talk, examples of industrial solutions and recent technology developments will be presented, with special focus on the life sciences sector.
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