A Tailored-Contour Aperture for Cellular Electrophysiology

We present a fast and easy fabrication method to create an hourglass-shaped aperture for cellular electrophysiology. A series of short pulses of CO₂ laser were applied to drill on borosilicate cover glass. Special reflow phenomenon of melted glass occurred at the rear of the surface resulted in the unique tailored-contour aperture. Smooth and debris-free surface of the aperture reveals the capability of planar patch-clamp application. In seal resistance characterization, calculated seal resistance was 1.2MOmega before and 862MOmega after cell attached to a 4mum aperture. These values are promising and they are most likely due to freshly activated contact surface during seal formation. This efficient and economic approach could be extended to array configuration and integrate with microfluidic system.