Laser subtractive-additive-welding microfabrication for Lab-On-Chip (LOC) applications

An approach employing ultrafast laser hybrid microfabrication combining ablation, 3D nanolithography and welding is proposed for the realization of Lab-On-Chip (LOC)device. The same laser setup is shown to be suitable for fabricating microgrooves in glass slabs, polymerization of fine meshes inside them, and, lastly, sealing the whole chip with cover glass into one monolithic piece. The created microfluidic device proved its particle sorting function by separating 1 mu m and 10 mu m polystyrene spheres from a mixture. Next, a lens adapter for a cell phone's camera was manufactured via thermal extrusion 3D printing technique which allowed to achieve sufficient magnification to clearly resolve <10 mu m features. All together shows fs-laser microfabrication technology as a flexible and versatile tool for study and manufacturing of Lab-On-Chip devices.