Monolithic integration of microfluidic channels and semiconductor lasers

S J Cran-McGreehin, Kishan Dholakia, Thomas Fraser Krauss

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

We present a fabrication method for the monolithic integration of microfluidic channels into semiconductor laser material. Lasers are designed to couple directly into the microfluidic channel, allowing submerged particles pass through the output beams of the lasers. The interaction between particles in the channel and the lasers, operated in either forward or reverse bias, allows for particle detection, and the optical forces can be used to trap and move particles. Both interrogation and manipulation are made more amenable for lab-on-a-chip applications through monolithic integration. The devices are very small, they require no external optical components, have perfect intrinsic alignment, and can be created with virtually any planar configuration of lasers in order to perform a variety of tasks. Their operation requires no optical expertise and only low electrical power, thus making them suitable for computer interfacing and automation. Insulating the pn junctions from the fluid is the key challenge, which is overcome by using photo-definable SU8-2000 polymer. (c) Optical Society of America.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)7723
Number of pages7723
JournalOptics Express
Volume14
Issue number17
Publication statusPublished - 21 Aug 2006

Keywords

  • SINGLE CELLS

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