Abstract

Do It Yourself: Low Cost Micro-fabrication Techniques for Academic Research Labs

Abhijit Majumder, Assistant Professor, IIT Bombay

Micro fabrication and microfluidic have multiple applications in material science, fluid dynamics, biology, and in biomedical researches. Due to their ability to handle liquid of small volume, such structures are used where sample is expensive or the available quantity is limited. Also, because of their high surface to volume ratio, such structures may show interesting physical properties, such as capillary effect and higher rate of energy transfer. Microfabrication also has multiple potential applications in designing organ on chip. However, to fabricate structures at small length scale, one needs sophisticated and expensive fabrication facilities which may not be available in many research and academic institutes. This requirement limits many labs, particularly in developing countries, to exploit the full potential of microfabricated devices. In this talk, I'll share my experience in designing inexpensive micro-fabricated structures at the lab-scale and their use to address various scientific questions. Such structures can be made in any laboratory with very basic facilities. I'll discuss about fabrication methods of low cost micro-structures and microfluidic channels, and their applications in adhesion science, fluid flow studies, and cell biology.