Applications of Nanofluidic Devices in Chemistry

page 124 Abstract: Nanofluidic channels have many uses in the chemical field, including site specific combinatorial synthesis, macroand bio-molecular analysis, and other “lab on a chip” applications. The objective of this research is to fabricate arrays of nanochannels designed to facilitate the transport of aqueous ionic solutions by adapting a form of the nanoimprinting technique. Nanoimprinting relies on deforming the resist material under elevated pressure and, typically, temperature to replicate a mold surface. Since the contribution of capillary force is insufficient for extended channel lengths, the device is designed to employ the principle of asymmetric AC-field electroosmosis to drive fluid flow. The fabrication also incorporates the non-traditional resist of hydrogen silsesquioxane (HSQ). This material was selected due to its resulting hydrophilic surface property and unique ability to be imprinted at room temperature. This work is dedicated to developing and optimizing the processing conditions for fabricating arrays of nanochannels in HSQ capable of active pumping.