Abstract
We demonstrate a passive microfluidic system for simple and efficient metering, handling and control of parallel nanoliter samples on-chip. The system consist of two chips; one for sample loading, splitting and metering (based on capillary forces only), and another for sample plug movement in parallel reaction channels. The latter is based on a set of capillary valves and one single external pressure source only. The strength of the capillary valves determines the logic movement of the parallel sample droplets on-chip, permitting robust system control. In general, the presented system is applicable to a variety of multi-step reaction protocols with a large number of parallel channels.
