Structured surface wetting of a PTFE flow-cell for terahertz spectroscopy of proteins
Structured surface wetting of a PTFE flow-cell for terahertz spectroscopy of proteins
We have fabricated a terahertz compatible polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) based microfluidic flow-cell, in which terahertz time-domain spectroscopy of a range of concentrations of aqueous bovine serum albumin (BSA) was performed, demonstrating the device's suitability for future studies of biomolecular interactions. The novel combination of oxygen plasma treatments and milling was used to both increase and decrease the wettability of the channel and surrounding substrate (to superhydrophobic levels) respectively, producing a stark contrast in contact angles allowing surface tension effects to confine liquid in the channel. PTFE is a chemically inert, bio-compatible material with ideal spectroscopic properties at sub-millimetre wavelengths.
Microfluidics, Protein hydration, Terahertz spectroscopy
Klokkou, Nicholas T.
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Rowe, David J.
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Bowden, Bethany M.
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Sessions, Neil P.
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West, Jonathan J.
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Wilkinson, James S.
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Apostolopoulos, Vasilis
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1 February 2022
Klokkou, Nicholas T.
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Rowe, David J.
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Bowden, Bethany M.
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Sessions, Neil P.
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West, Jonathan J.
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Wilkinson, James S.
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Apostolopoulos, Vasilis
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Klokkou, Nicholas T., Rowe, David J., Bowden, Bethany M., Sessions, Neil P., West, Jonathan J., Wilkinson, James S. and Apostolopoulos, Vasilis
(2022)
Structured surface wetting of a PTFE flow-cell for terahertz spectroscopy of proteins.
Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical, 352, [131003].
(doi:10.1016/j.snb.2021.131003).
Abstract
We have fabricated a terahertz compatible polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) based microfluidic flow-cell, in which terahertz time-domain spectroscopy of a range of concentrations of aqueous bovine serum albumin (BSA) was performed, demonstrating the device's suitability for future studies of biomolecular interactions. The novel combination of oxygen plasma treatments and milling was used to both increase and decrease the wettability of the channel and surrounding substrate (to superhydrophobic levels) respectively, producing a stark contrast in contact angles allowing surface tension effects to confine liquid in the channel. PTFE is a chemically inert, bio-compatible material with ideal spectroscopic properties at sub-millimetre wavelengths.
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Published date: 1 February 2022
Additional Information:
Funding Information:
This work was funded by EPSRC via a Ph.D. studentship for N.T. Klokkou. Additionally, Bethany Bowden thanks the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Contract no. DSTLX-1000128554 ) for supporting an EPSRC industrial CASE student award.
Keywords:
Microfluidics, Protein hydration, Terahertz spectroscopy
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 455026
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/455026
ISSN: 0925-4005
PURE UUID: 6457fa32-ed5f-4399-b9d0-538810e676f0
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Date deposited: 03 Mar 2022 17:54
Last modified: 18 Mar 2024 03:23
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Contributors
Author:
Nicholas T. Klokkou
Author:
David J. Rowe
Author:
Bethany M. Bowden
Author:
Neil P. Sessions
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