Suspension Handling System

A new idea of particle handling is proposed here, consisting of a matrix of mechanical gates. The particle sizes that can be handled range from the sub-micron scale to a few microns. The suspension-handling device consists of a silicon chip encapsulated by two glass chips. A free standing silicone membrane with a thickness of 2 μm is used to reduce the cross-sections of channels with a size of 40×10 μm. We could show that the flow of micron-sized particles in the channels can be monitored and controlled by actuating the valves. The density of valves is 600 valves/in.2 in our first prototype.