A microfluidic device to control single crystallization on the micron scale has been developed. The salt solution was stored in the nano-volume gaps between the arrays of protrudent circular plots in the microchip. Th...A microfluidic device to control single crystallization on the micron scale has been developed. The salt solution was stored in the nano-volume gaps between the arrays of protrudent circular plots in the microchip. The mixed organic solvent was injected into the chip as the counter diffusion phase for crystallization forming. This device provides a liquid-liquid interface through which only one phase flows while the other stays at the fixed plot. Therefore, it is possible to control the position of crystallization on the fixed plot. We can control the size and the uniformity of single crystals from 5 to 50 μm in length by adjusting the relative factors, such as interface lifetime, breeds of the mix-organic solvents and injecting velocities. The longer interface lifetime and lower organic solvent injecting velocities can bring up larger and more asymmetric crystals, which nearly shows the same trend compared with the macroscopic crystallization. Finally, the effect of the surfactant on the crystallization in the microdevice was studied. By adding the surfactant into the liquid-liquid interface, smaller sizes of crystals can be obtained without changing the crystal configuration.展开更多
基金Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 20775042)the National Basic Research Program of China (Grant No. 2007CB714507)
文摘A microfluidic device to control single crystallization on the micron scale has been developed. The salt solution was stored in the nano-volume gaps between the arrays of protrudent circular plots in the microchip. The mixed organic solvent was injected into the chip as the counter diffusion phase for crystallization forming. This device provides a liquid-liquid interface through which only one phase flows while the other stays at the fixed plot. Therefore, it is possible to control the position of crystallization on the fixed plot. We can control the size and the uniformity of single crystals from 5 to 50 μm in length by adjusting the relative factors, such as interface lifetime, breeds of the mix-organic solvents and injecting velocities. The longer interface lifetime and lower organic solvent injecting velocities can bring up larger and more asymmetric crystals, which nearly shows the same trend compared with the macroscopic crystallization. Finally, the effect of the surfactant on the crystallization in the microdevice was studied. By adding the surfactant into the liquid-liquid interface, smaller sizes of crystals can be obtained without changing the crystal configuration.
