Long-lasting FR-4 surface hydrophilisation towards commercial PCB passive microfluidics
Long-lasting FR-4 surface hydrophilisation towards commercial PCB passive microfluidics
Printed circuit boards (PCB) technologies are an attractive system for simple sensing and microfluidic systems. Controlling the surface properties of PCB material is an important part of this technology and to date there has been no study on long-term hydrophilisation stability of these materials. In this work, the effect of different oxygen plasma input power and treatment duration times on the wetting properties of FR-4 surfaces was investigated by sessile droplet contact angle measurements. Super and weakly hydrophilic behaviour was achieved and the retention time of these properties was studied, with the hydrophilic nature being retained for at least 26 days. To demonstrate the applicability of this treatment method, a commercially manufactured microfluidic structure made from a multilayer PCB (3-layer FR-4 stack) was exposed to oxygen plasma at the optimum conditions. The structures could be filled with deionised (DI) water under capillary flow unlike the virgin devices.
PCB microfluidics, oxygen plasma, surface modification, hydrophilic, passive microfluidics, hydrophilicity retention
69-75
Vasilakis, N.
7b5d4280-8c8d-4e55-8d58-6a38ab5c0bb2
Moschou, D.
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Carta, D.
120de978-2aaa-4b4d-bf5f-3625c503040d
Morgan, Hywel
de00d59f-a5a2-48c4-a99a-1d5dd7854174
Prodromakis, T.
d58c9c10-9d25-4d22-b155-06c8437acfbf
15 April 2016
Vasilakis, N.
7b5d4280-8c8d-4e55-8d58-6a38ab5c0bb2
Moschou, D.
b5fef8ae-e4cb-4de5-8ade-1b5c807c74d3
Carta, D.
120de978-2aaa-4b4d-bf5f-3625c503040d
Morgan, Hywel
de00d59f-a5a2-48c4-a99a-1d5dd7854174
Prodromakis, T.
d58c9c10-9d25-4d22-b155-06c8437acfbf
Vasilakis, N., Moschou, D. and Carta, D. et al.
(2016)
Long-lasting FR-4 surface hydrophilisation towards commercial PCB passive microfluidics.
Applied Surface Science, 368, .
(doi:10.1016/j.apsusc.2015.12.123).
Abstract
Printed circuit boards (PCB) technologies are an attractive system for simple sensing and microfluidic systems. Controlling the surface properties of PCB material is an important part of this technology and to date there has been no study on long-term hydrophilisation stability of these materials. In this work, the effect of different oxygen plasma input power and treatment duration times on the wetting properties of FR-4 surfaces was investigated by sessile droplet contact angle measurements. Super and weakly hydrophilic behaviour was achieved and the retention time of these properties was studied, with the hydrophilic nature being retained for at least 26 days. To demonstrate the applicability of this treatment method, a commercially manufactured microfluidic structure made from a multilayer PCB (3-layer FR-4 stack) was exposed to oxygen plasma at the optimum conditions. The structures could be filled with deionised (DI) water under capillary flow unlike the virgin devices.
Text
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More information
Accepted/In Press date: 15 December 2015
e-pub ahead of print date: 21 December 2015
Published date: 15 April 2016
Keywords:
PCB microfluidics, oxygen plasma, surface modification, hydrophilic, passive microfluidics, hydrophilicity retention
Organisations:
Nanoelectronics and Nanotechnology
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 384303
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/384303
ISSN: 0169-4332
PURE UUID: 49cfe1ae-fe38-4339-878e-50ef847a8b22
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Date deposited: 21 Dec 2015 08:52
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 03:18
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Contributors
Author:
N. Vasilakis
Author:
D. Moschou
Author:
D. Carta
Author:
Hywel Morgan
Author:
T. Prodromakis
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